Roman cult images : the lives and worship of idols, from the Iron Age to late antiquity / Philip Kiernan, Kennesaw State University.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kiernan, Philip, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Idols and images--Rome.

Idols and images.

Rome--Religion.

Rome.

Rome (Empire).

Religion.

Physical Description:

xvi, 358 pages : illustrations (black and white) ; 26 cm

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, United Kingdom ; New York, NY : Cambridge University Press, 2020.

Summary:

"In this book, Philip Kiernan explores how cult images functioned in Roman temples from the Iron Age to Late Antiquity in the Roman west. He demonstrates how and why a temple's idols, were more important to ritual than other images such as votive offerings and decorative sculpture. These idols were seen by many to be divine and possessed of agency. They were, thus, the primary focus of worship. Aided by cross-cultural comparative material, Kirenan's study brings a biographical approach to explore the "lives" of idols and cult images - how they were created, housed in temples, used and worshipped, and eventually destroyed or buried. He also shows how the status of cult images could change, how new idols and other cult images were being continuously created, and how, in each phase of their lives, we find evidence for the significant power of idols"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Introduction: Idols and Other Cult Images

The Birth of Cult Images: Early Rome and the Iron Age

The Birth of Cult Images: Continuity and Innovation in the Imperial Period

Idols at Home

Idols in Action

The End of Idols.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Format:

Online version: Kiernan, Philip, 1979- Roman cult images

ISBN:

9781108487344

1108487343

9781108720090

1108720099

OCLC:

1121287732