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• 31 oct 2016

  Rome

  Call for papers - History

  Meanings of rituals

  Incense and religion in ancient societies

  Although several studies have drawn attention to the role of incense as an ingredient in ritual and a means of communication between men and gods, there remains no comprehensive examination of the practical functions and cultural semantics of incense in the ancient world, whether as a purifying agent, a performative sign of a transcendent world, an olfactory signal to summon the deity, a placatory libation, or food for the gods. Moreover, recent archaeological research has provided evidence (alongside literary, epigraphic and iconographic evidence) that the physical origins and chemical constituents of incense are complex and diverse, as are their properties : resins, vegetable gums, spices, and a welter of aromatic products that could be exhibited and burned before ancient eyes and noses. These were components of a multi-sensory religious experience in which music, colourful costumes, lavish banquets and tactile encounters defined the ritualsensibilities of the community.

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• 13 oct 2016

  14 oct 2016

  15 oct 2016

  Rome

  Conference, symposium - Religion

  Reception of the Greek fathers in Italy in the Middle Ages

  Cette rencontre s’inscrit dans le cadre du programme quinquennal « La mémoire des Pères : disponibilité et usages politiques du souvenir patristique dans l’Italie médiévale ». Après une première étape consacrée à la « mémoire d’Ambroise de Milan », le programme s’intéresse à présent aux fonctions de la réception des Pères grecs.

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