Producing food, children, and music

An ecofeminist perspective of Archaic Cyprus

Bibliographic Data

ID12485361
AuthorsClaudina Romero Mayorga (0000-0001-8664-2650, University of Reading, corresponding author)
Year2024
Volume31
Issue2
Pages475-492
Publication date2024-12-09
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueArenal Revista de historia de las mujeres (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1134-6396 • E-ISSN: 2792-1565
PublisherEditorial de la Universidad de Granada (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.30827/arenal.v31i2.26036
OpenAlexW4406599562
LanguageEN
References cited12

The Ure Museum of Greek Archaeology (University of Reading) houses a small collection of Cypriot objects, which includes 9 terracotta figurines holding different attributes: bread, shields, animals, and musical instruments, that is why they have traditionally been interpreted as ex-votos, created by a farming society to please gods and ensure prosperity. Unsurprisingly, most of them have been classified as female, while those with a shield and conic headgear have been recognised as male soldiers. This paper focuses on how these female figurines embodied the different roles assigned to women in the agricultural-based economy and religion of Archaic Cyprus. It also analyses the local economy from a gendered perspective, studying how women from a farming community faced domestic demands, complied with institutionalised religious and public roles, while providing children to secure descendance

Aesthetics · Art · Literature · Perspective (graphical · Visual arts · History · Island Studies and Pacific Affairs