The Spiritual Life of Teleilat Ghassul and Building 78
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 5122422 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Ben Greet (0000-0003-0800-7752, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2021 |
| Volume | 84 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 140-147 |
| Publication date | 2021-06-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Near Eastern Archaeology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1094-2076 • E-ISSN: 1557-5594 |
| Publisher | University of Chicago Press (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1086/714073 |
| OpenAlex | W3164447274 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 9 |
This article explores the spiritual life of the community at Chalcolithic Teleilat Ghassul through a reinterpretation of the frescoes within Building 78 on Tell 3. The building itself was likely used as a “lineage house” and a center of ritual activity, which is evidenced through the frescoes (the bird fresco and spook masks), numerous cornets, and 200–300 years of phasing. This article argues, through ethnographic and ecological evidence, that the bird fresco represents a moorhen, symbolizes spiritual liminality, and is tied to cyclical symbolism through the location of Teleilat Ghassul on a major migration route. Furthermore, the spook masks can be interpreted as hedgehogs that are also tied to a cyclical symbolism through their hibernation patterns. This reinterpretation may allow us to posit the types of rituals that occurred in Building 78, for example, harvest or coming-of-age rituals
Aesthetics · Archaeology · Art · Art history · Ethnography · Fresco · Geography · Liminality · Painting · Reinterpretation · Shamanism · Ancient Egypt and Archaeology · Ancient Near East History · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · History
A New Type of Chalcolithic Ritual Vessel and Some Implications for the Naḥal Mishmar Hoard
The Archaeology of Cult and the Chalcolithic Sanctuary at Gilat
Building Continuity in the Central Anatolian Neolithic
The Religious Beliefs of the Ghassulians c . 4000–3100 b.c
A New Fertility Figurine and New Animal Motifs from the Chalcolithic in the Southern Levant
Community is Cult, Cult is Community
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,5 |
| Citation span | 2024 - 2024 (1) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |