Joan Connelly . . . has produced a fascinating book on the central role of priestesses in ancient Greek society. Her survey is fully documented and beautifully illustrated. One cannot but admire her enthusiasm for the subject and her deft handling of the evidence." --Colin Austin, University of Cambridge, coeditor of Aristophanes Thesmophoriazusae

Well written, beautifully illustrated, and superabundantly documented, it will richly reward the reader's effort." ---Ann Plogsterth, Wellesley Much more is known about the other sacred duty mentioned by the comic chorus, the rites of Brauron, a sanctuary of Artemis located on the eastern coast of Attica beginning in the 6th century bce. 2 Every four years, a select group of girls between the ages of five and ten was chosen from each Athenian tribe to live in this sanctuary as arktoi (little bears) for an unspecified period of time, possibly as long as a year. Knowledge of these rituals derives from two types of evidence: myths connected with Artemis and artifacts found within the Brauronian precinct, including pottery fragments and records of textile dedications made by women. According to local legend, a bear scratched a young girl when playing with her. When the girl’s brothers killed the bear, they angered the goddess, who sent a plague that could only be stopped by the service of young girls “playing the bear” before marriage, a rite known as the Arkteia. The privileges of the priestess differed widely between temples. Normally, the priestess was given an income from the city, since the office was regarded as a public office. [10] In addition to this, she was also awarded for each ritual and festival she participated in, and given fees for special rituals she performed for private people. [11] She was normally given a share in the sacrificial animals, such as the skins and furs of the dead animals. [12] Connelly's landmark study is a must-read for any scholar of ancient religion, art, or gender studies."—Laurie A. Kilker, Religion JournalThis is the first full presentation in English or in any language of the female priest in the ancient Greek world. Connelly adduces evidence that women all over the Greek world had, as priestesses, positions of great public influence in their communities. I predict this study will have a wide readership by general classicists as well as those interested in ancient religion, ancient society, and women in ancient Greece, not to mention by art historians. This promises to be a landmark study."—Stephen V. Tracy, American School of Classical Studies at Athens, author of Athens and Macedon: Attic Letter-Cutters of 300 to 229 B.C. Joan Breton Connelly's Portrait of a Priestess: Women and Ritual in Ancient Greece is the biggest, fullest and most up-to-date study of these important women from the time of Homer through to the early years of Christianity. Beautifully illustrated and substantially documented, it is also highly argumentative and . . . ambitious."—James Davidson, Times Literary Supplement All that being said, you would think I would give it a one star. And honestly this staring was hard because all that said, it was a two. But there are some aspects of this book that are worthy of five stars.

At Athens, priesthoods tended to be hereditary and controlled by a few aristocratic families. The Eteobutadai, a genos (clan) that claimed descent from the original Athenian dynasty, reserved to their female members the right to be appointed priestess of Athena Polias, the principal deity of the polis. Both this priesthood and that of Demeter and Kore remained in the same families for over sevenh hundred years. In 508–507 bce, the reforms of Cleisthenes introduced new priesthoods that were open to all citizens having the necessary qualifications. For instance, the priestess of Athena Nike, instituted in the 440s, was open to “all Athenian women” ( IG 1 335). Priestesses performed a variety of functions related to the worship of the deity and as a result had a strong public presence and authority within their communities. They led processions, offered prayers, lit fires on altars, poured libations, adorned statues, received and prepared sacrificial animals for slaughter, presided over sacrifice, distributed and consumed sacrificial meat, and tended sacred implements. 1 Within sacred precincts, priestesses carried the key to the temple and cared for the xoanon (cult image), washing and dressing it as custom dictated. She also officiated at private rituals, when a private person wished to be initiated in a mystery, or wished to have a personal prayer said for them, for which she would receive a fee. [7]Fragments of pottery vessels in the shape used for dedications to Artemis from the late 5th century, called krateriskoi, which have been excavated in the sanctuary provide visual evidence for the ritual of “playing the bear.” They show girls naked or wearing short tunics as they dance, run, or process to an altar. They often hold wreathes or torches, and the occasional presence of a palm tree points to the worship of Artemis. Some feature bear imagery, depicting either an adult wearing a bear mask or a bear chasing a girl toward an altar. In addition to the ritual activities of girls, older women appear to help to prepare the girls for their ritual activities, perhaps their mothers, as well as one or more priestesses. The rituals may have culminated in the shedding of a saffron garment to mark the final stage of the transition. Scholars have interpreted these activities as a rite of passage that marked the physical maturation of girls and prepared them for marriage by reinforcing their identification with animals in need of domestication. 3 Women also made dedications of clothing to Artemis at Brauron after childbirth, in celebration of a successful labor and delivery. These offerings are recorded in inscriptions which have been excavated from the Brauroneion branch at Athens. From the late 5th and mostly 4th centuries bce, these inscriptions yield valuable insights into the types of votive offerings, including garments and jewelry, accomplished by women. Since only the first names of the women are usually recorded, without the names of fathers or husbands, it is likely that they acted on their own, without the oversight of a male family member. This is the first full presentation in English or in any language of the female priest in the ancient Greek world. Connelly adduces evidence that women all over the Greek world had, as priestesses, positions of great public influence in their communities. I predict this study will have a wide readership by general classicists as well as those interested in ancient religion, ancient society, and women in ancient Greece, not to mention by art historians. This promises to be a landmark study." —Stephen V. Tracy, American School of Classical Studies at Athens, author of Athens and Macedon: Attic Letter-Cutters of 300 to 229 B.C. Well written, beautifully illustrated, and superabundantly documented, it will richly reward the reader's effort."—Ann Plogsterth, Wellesley Princeton University Press must be thanked and complimented for offering such a significant and persuasive revisionist study, very generously illustrated, at so modest a price, making it affordable not just for university libraries and specialists, but for others who wish to gain 'state-of-the-question' understanding of female elites and leaders in the Greco-Roman world." ---Victor Castellani, European Legacy Lccn 2006013073 Ocr_converted abbyy-to-hocr 1.1.20 Ocr_module_version 0.0.17 Old_pallet IA17214 Openlibrary_edition

This is the first full presentation in English or in any language of the female priest in the ancient Greek world. Connelly adduces evidence that women all over the Greek world had, as priestesses, positions of great public influence in their communities. I predict this study will have a wide readership by general classicists as well as those interested in ancient religion, ancient society, and women in ancient Greece, not to mention by art historians. This promises to be a landmark study." --Stephen V. Tracy, American School of Classical Studies at Athens, author of Athens and Macedon: Attic Letter-Cutters of 300 to 229 B.C.

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