Companionship and Service Grave goods in the shape of human figures, made from materials such as wood and terracotta, have a long history in Chinese culture. By the time of the so-called First Emperor, Qin Shi Huang, founder of the Qin dynasty, whose terracotta army is widely known as the most impressive example of terracotta  … Read more

By Virginia, 5th November 2019

  Category: China & The Orient
  Tags: , Ancient Art, Ancient Culture, Chinese Culture, Offerings to the Gods
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Votive offerings were gifts that the ancient Greeks and Romans gave to a deity as thanks for bringing good fortune or for granting favours. The offerings served as an important expression of the personal relationship between ancient peoples and their gods and goddesses. Votive Offerings as a Public Act of Devotion Greeks and Romans typically  … Read more

By Virginia, 1st February 2019

  Category: Ancient Greece, Divinity & Religion
  Tags: , Greek Mythology, Greek Statues, Minoan Peak Sanctuaries, Offerings to the Gods, Sacred Places
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Greek pottery is one of our main points of contact with the ancient world. Greek pots remain in abundance, beginning with those dating to the Minoan era (from around or even before 3000 BC) up until the end of the Hellenistic period (31 BC). As we might expect, they come in a variety of shapes  … Read more

By Virginia, 18th July 2018

  Category: Ancient Greece, Buying & Collecting
  Tags: , Black-Figure Pottery, Greek Pottery, Greek Vases, Offerings to the Gods, Red-Figure Pottery
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Who was Dionysus? Dionysus, or Bacchus to the Romans, was the son of Zeus and the mortal Semele. A pregnant Semele begged Zeus to reveal his true form to her - mortals, however, could not look upon the undisguised form of a god without dying - and so she perished when he eventually relented. Zeus  … Read more

By Virginia, 26th June 2018

  Category: Ancient Greece
  Tags: , Greek God of Fertility, Greek God of Theatre, Greek God of Wine, Offerings to the Gods, Wine-Drinking
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