Πελοπόννησος οἰκητήριον Ποσειδῶνος (Peloponnêsos oikêtêrion Poseidônos) - Heiligtümer und Kulte des Poseidon auf der Peloponnes

Description

The cult of Poseidon is wide-spread in the whole Greek world, and shows an exceptionally manifold character. Thus, the study of this particular deity can be placed in a chronological, geographical, and thematic wide perspective. Mylonopoulos discusses thorougly the sanctuaries and cults of the Peloponnese, which offer a representative sample. Through the study of the archaeological record, but also using the literary sources and the documentary material (inscriptions), the author tries to understand not only the nature of the given deity, but also its regional significance, and the interaction between the civic community which excercizes its cult and the nature of the cult. These elements may be reflected by the location of a sanctuary, by its architectural form, or by the character of the dedications and cult paraphernalia. The author presents all the relevant archaeological, numismatic, epigraphic, and literary testimonia. After evaluating this material, he discusses inter alia the distribution of the sanctuaries, the characteristic features and the location of the poseidonian sacred space, the worshippers of this divinity, his relations to other divinities, his cult names and the political aspects of his cult.