The wisdom of Thoth : magical texts in ancient Mediterranean civilisations /
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This volume represents a selection of contributions on Mediterranean themes from a wider international interdisciplinary conference on Magical Texts in Ancient Civilizations, organised by the Centre for Comparative Studies of Civilizations at Jagiellonian University in Krakow.
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Conference proceedings. :
1 online resource : illustrations (black and white, and colour). :
Specialized. :
9781784912482 (PDF ebook) :
Magic and divination in Malay illustrated manuscripts /
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This book offers an integrated study of the texts and images of illustrated Malay manuscripts on magic and divination from private and public collections in Malaysia, the UK and Indonesia. Containing some of the rare examples of Malay painting, these manuscripts provide direct evidence for the intercultural connections between the Malay region, other parts of Southeast Asia and the rest of the world. In this richly illustrated volume many images and texts are gathered for the first time, making this book essential reading for all those interested in the practice of magic and divination, and the history of Malay, Southeast Asian and Islamic manuscript art.
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1 online resource (xxvii, 349 pages) : illustrations (chiefly color), maps. :
Includes bibliographical references (p. [307]-331) and index. :
9789004301726 :
2213-3844 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Dalmatia and the Mediterranean : portable archeology and the poetics of influence /
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Using the Braudelian concept of the Mediterranean this volume focuses on the condition of "coastal exchanges" involving the Dalmatian littoral and its Adriatic and more distant maritime network. Spalato and Ragusa intersect with Constantinople, Cairo and Spanish Naples just as Sinan, Palladio and Robert Adam cross paths in this liquid expanse. Concentrating on materiality and on the arts, architecture in particular, the authors identify portability and hybridity as characteristic of these exchanges, and tease out expected and unexpected serendipitous moments when they occurred. Focusing on translation and its instruments these essays expand the traditional concept of influence by thrusting mobility and the \'hardware\' of cultural transmission, its mechanisms, rather than its effects, into the foreground. Contributors include: Doris Behrens-Abouseif , SOAS, University of London ; Joško Belamarić , Institute of Art History , Split; Marzia Faietti , Uffizi , Florence; Jasenka Gudelj , University of Zagreb ; Cemal Kafadar , Harvard University ; Ioli Kalavrezou , Harvard University ; Suzanne Marchand , State University of Louisiana ; Erika Naginski , Harvard University ; Gülru Necipoğlu , Harvard University ; Goran Nikšić , City of Split , Split; Alina Payne , Harvard University ; Avinoam Shalem , Columbia University and David Young Kim , University of Pennsylvania
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004263918 :
2213-3399 ;
Secrecy and Concealment : Studies in the History of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Religions /
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This volume deals with secrecy and concealment in the history of mediterranean religions as pattern of social interaction. Secrecy is a powerful means in establishing identity and interaction as G. Simmel has demonstrated. Using his approach the scholars of this volume describe and explain the practical meaning of concealment in two different religious systems: in Egyptian and Greek polytheism and in Jewish, Christian, Gnostic and Shi'i monotheisms. This point of view reveals that all these religions shaped social norms concerning public and private aspects of the human self.
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Proceedings of a meeting held June 1-4, 1993, at the Werner Reimers-Stiftung, Bad Homburg, Germany. :
1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004378872 :
0169-8834 ;
Transformations of the Inner Self in Ancient Religions /
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This collection of papers from two workshops - held in Heidelberg, Germany, in July 1996 and Jerusalem, Israel, in October 1997 - is concerned with anthropological rather than theological aspects of the Near Eastern and Mediterranean religions, ranging from the 'primary' religions of the archaic period and their complex developments in Egypt and Mesopotamia to the 'soteriological' movements and 'secondary' religions that emerged in Late Antiquity. The first part of the book focuses on \'Confession and Conversion\', while the second part is devoted to the topic of \'Guilt, Sin and Rituals of Purification\'. The primary purpose of this volume is to convey a sense of the dynamics and dialectical relationships between the various Near Eastern and Mediterranean religions from the archaic period to Late Antiquity.
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Two contributions in German, one in French. :
1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references. :
9789004379084 :
0169-8834 ;
The dragon in medieval East Christian and Islamic art
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This book is a pioneering work on a key iconographic motif, that of the dragon. It examines the perception of this complex, multifaceted motif within the overall intellectual and visual universe of the medieval Irano-Turkish world. Using a broadly comparative approach, the author explores the ever-shifting semantics of the dragon motif as it emerges in neighbouring Muslim and non-Muslim cultures. The book will be of particular interest to those concerned with the relationship between the pre-Islamic, Islamic and Eastern Christian (especially Armenian) world. The study is fully illustrated, with 209 (b/w and full colour) plates, many of previously unpublished material. Illustrations include photographs of architectural structures visited by the author, as well as a vast collection of artefacts, all of which are described and discussed in detail with inscription readings, historical data and textual sources.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004209725 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Italian Witchcraft and Shamanism : The Tradition of Segnature, Indigenous and Trans-cultural Shamanic Traditions in Italy /
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Shamanism is thriving as an exotic import and a hidden native tradition in Italy today. This ethnographical work uncovers two faces of Italian shamanism. The first is trans-cultural shamans who creatively adapt rituals and beliefs from indigenous cultures worldwide. Second, extensive fieldwork shows how regional folk magic practices of segnatori and segnatrici constitute a little-known but enduring form of native Italian shamanism. By documenting these parallel worlds, contemporary magic workers appear to be the heirs of ancient local healing traditions. Offering rare insights into vernacular religion, this book vividly portrays shamans' past and present on the Italian peninsula.
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1 online resource (220 pages) : illustrations. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004694187
Ganga to Mekong : A Cultural Voyage through Textiles. Foreword by Kapila Vatsyayan /
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Textiles have been the binding factor in the cultural history of India and Southeast Asia from times immemorial. As the foremost currency they were carried by the traders from the banks of river Ganga to the fertile areas around the river Mekong and to the rich spice islands of Suvarnadwipa, Indonesia. Over the centuries, these textiles turned into vehicles of culture that built the foundation for an enduring multi-layered and multi-coloured relationship. The painted textiles from the Coromandel coast, the block-printed fabrics and the doubleikat patola from Gujarat enticed Southeast Asian royalty and masses alike. These trade textiles, considered ritually powerful and imbued with magical qualities played an integral role in binding India with Southeast Asia while becoming a part of the regional folklore, ceremonies and rituals. Over time they were seamlessly assimilated into the local culture. This cultural amalgam was here to stay as solid as the rocks of Borobudur and Konark and as intricately woven as the double-ikat patola which is the cultural legacy of India in Southeast Asia.
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1 online resource (220 pages) : illustrations. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004752498
