Archaeology Magazine - January 1973 - 46

receiving the homage of various gods and contains over thirty types of plaques, making it the
richest group of the pinakes that have been recovered. On many of these Aphrodite is present
and Priickner suggests that she acts as an intermediary, introducing the newly-arrived gods to
the old, established divinities of Locri (page 81).
Type 124 is also an offering to Persephone, and
is the only representation based on the Homeric
Hymn to Demeter, who is shown seated in a
mourning pose, being approached by Hekáte.
Finally, types 125-126 include motifs of general
significance: Nike, siren, Europa, ram, bull, cow
and calf, and the like.

Riickner also uses the evidence of Locrian
topography to make his case. He identifies the
temple of Aphrodite with the Marasà temple
and considers its proximity to the sea evocative
of Aphrodite's arrival on shore (perhaps in that
locality) and her role as patroness of seafarers.
The architectural phases of the Marasà temple
are also felt to add to his interpretation. The first
building, which dates from the seventh century
b.c., consisted of a cella, divided lengthwise by a
line of interior supports, and an adyton. A later
remodelling retained the double-naved cella, but
suppressed the adyton and added a colonnaded
front. Finally, around 450 b.c., the temple was
entirely rebuilt on a much larger scale with a
complete peristyle and a single, undivided cella.
In the author's view the first phase would reflect
the worship of Aphrodite alone, with the cult
statue placed in the adyton; the second phase,
with the elimination of the adyton, would reflect
the arrival of Hermes and the emplacement of
two statues in the bipartite cella. This would
be in keeping with the idea that the cult of Hermes was introduced by Samian immigrants
around 493 who were used to a joint cult of
Aphrodite and Hermes at home. The third phase
would reflect the impetus given to the cult by the
addition of ritual prostitution and a proportionate need for more space. At the same time the
role of Hermes would have become secondary
and his statue removed from the single cella or
placed behind that of Aphrodite.
Priickner also argues that in addition to the
main temple sanctuary there was a garden of
Aphrodite that included a light pavilion or dovecote as depicted on the pinakes. He locates this
garden on the Mannella hill, from which the
plaques would have been swept down into the
46

valley below. The valley itself would then qualify
as the site of the shrine of Persephone, since the
votive plaques connected with her cult were
found in the same context. Finally, the author
offers a synthesis of style and chronology for the
pinakes: they date from ca. 480-450 b.c. with a
peak of production around 460-450, although
plaques continued to be made from the earlier
molds to the end of the fifth century. The time
span would correspond exactly to Justin's account
of the occasion of the vow, its practice and subsequent disappearance after a few generations.

This is Priickner's theory in its main outline.
The book is filled, however, with a variety of interesting comments and observations based on
impressive amounts of scholarly and archaeological research. It should be said immediately
that many of his ideas are undoubtedly correct
and that his reconstruction of a ritual prostitution in fulfillment of a vow seems entirely plausible on the literary evidence. It is because of the
strength of a number of his arguments that we
are prompted to question uncertain points in the
hope that the author may clarify them in the
future.
First, it is possible that the sanctuary of Persephone had no temple, but an argument based on
Livy's use of the words fanum, delubrum, templm as mere translations of the Greek hieron is
unconvincing. Both the Greek and Latin terms
are regularly used to mean "temple" (for Livy's
use of delubrum in particular see D. W. Packard,
A Concordance to Livy, Volume 1 [Cambridge,
Mass.] page 1195).
Questionable also is the author's attribution of
the fifth century Marasà temple to Aphrodite. In
support of his attribution he mentions (page 30)
that near its northeast corner, close to the altar,
but outside the city walls, were found quantities
of small figurines of Aphrodite with dove and
pomegranate. But against this evidence is that
of another votive deposit found at Marasà
"containing numerous terracotta statuettes of a
bearded Zeus, with one arm resting upon a column with an Ionic capital or holding a thunderbolt in his upraised hand. This discovery almost
certainly identifies with Zeus the Ionic temple
formerly associated with the Dioscuri." (A.D.
Trendall, Journal of Hellenic Studies : Archaeological Reports for 1966-67, 13 [1968] page 38.)
If we admit the earlier Marasà temple belonged to Aphrodite, the division of the cella

Archaeology Magazine - January 1973

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Archaeology Magazine - January 1973