Cultural Change in the Religious Sphere of Ancient Umbria between the Sixth and the First century BCE
Zapelloni Pavia, Arianna
2020
Abstract
This dissertation examines the architecture and votive deposits from Umbrian sanctuaries between the sixth and early first century BCE. In line with traditional approaches to central Italian cult places, scholars who focus on the Umbria region have largely considered Roman expansion as the cause of apparent change in the use of Umbrian sanctuaries, as well as in the composition of their votive offerings during the Hellenistic period. Pointing out the limitations of this argument, I suggest a different model to track cultural change in the region’s religious sphere. By reviewing all available evidence from the onset of Umbrian religious material culture to the enfranchisement of the Italian peninsula, I analyze each sanctuary as a component of a larger Umbrian regional sacred landscape. Following my introduction (Chapter 1), the dissertation is divided into two parts. The first part (Chapters 2 and 3), introduces the theoretical frameworks used to approach the study of cultural change and sacred spaces in central Italy and the Umbrian region. The second part (Chapters 4, 5, and 6) elaborates Umbrian sacred spaces in their material and ritual contexts. Chapter 4 offers an overview of the region’s history and points out how recent work on Roman expansionism complicates our traditional understanding of the third and second century BCE as crucial to the political, social, and cultural changes that occurred during this time. Chapter 5 explores the topography, architecture, and votive deposits of each of the fifteen Umbrian sanctuaries that form my core corpus. Drawing from archival material, primary and secondary literature, and a first-hand analysis of all figurative votive offerings displayed in museums and stored in local depots in Umbria, I demonstrate that the continued use of Umbrian sanctuaries during the Hellenistic period did not depend on the political allegiances of local communities to Rome. Furthermore, I argue that the appearance of terracotta votive offerings is not related to Roman expansionism. The practice of dedicating anatomical votive offerings was an established custom in Umbria as early as the sixth/fifth century BCE. The conclusion (Chapter 6) explores the larger stakes of this work: the transformation of socio-economic and cultural trends over time. I posit that the transformation visible in Umbrian sanctuaries during the Hellenistic period is the result of multiple factors: endemic economical regional trends; the interconnection and negotiations among Umbrian and Roman elites; long-lived ritual practices; and the increasing contacts between Umbrian and Hellenistic cultures. Ultimately, this project shows that indigenous populations maintained extant local architectural and ritual customs while at the same time responding and adapting to the new socio-political realities that accompanied Roman hegemony.Subjects
Pre-Roman Italy Sacred places Roman expansion Archaeology of religion
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