Jenny Högström Berntson

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Mellan kult och kulturarv

This study examines votive gifts from Heraion, a sanctuary situated at the mouth of the River Sele in the ancient Greek colony of Poseidonia (Paestum), Italy. It is focusing the significance of votive gifts by examining two categories of objects - terracotta figurines depicting groups of dancing women and votive keys. The concept of a “triple function” of votive offerings is introduced to highlight the agency of votive gifts within the dynamic interplay between humans, deities, and society, and to accentuate how their meanings are reinforced through dedication and display within the sanctuary. The dissertation combines iconological methods of analysis with life history approaches and theories of materiality to investigate the votives functions, symbolic connotations, and agency across different phases of their “biographies”. Through an analysis of previous scholarship and how the objects are exhibited at the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Paestum, the study demonstrates how votives are interpreted and presented in museum contexts. The analysis shows that the votives represent central gendered roles, offering an important yet previously underexplored interpretation that has largely been lost in museum contexts. Emphasis is placed on gender perspectives and critical heritage studies to illustrate how women’s roles in cultic contexts are represented, or rendered invisible, in both scholarly interpretations as well as in museum displays. The study demonstrates how selective narratives shape their perceived meanings and influence contemporary understandings of the past. The study underscores the active role of material objects in both historical and contemporary heritagization processes.