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incredible complexity of nerve function that provides the various sensations we
commonly group under the concept of touch (temperature, pressure, pain, etc.), many
aspects of which we are only now beginning to understand in detail, Galen relied heavily
on the concepts set down by Aristotle, though he refined them extensively by means of
scientific observation.
In the process of dissection, Galen made many minute and remarkable
observations concerning the nervous system. He paid special attention to the peripheral
nerves (such as the sciatic nerves in the legs and the nerves that control the hands), which
he concluded controlled both motor functions and sensory functions. He was partially
correct in this analysis, though he was unable to discern that these nerves are in fact made
up of two distinct types of fibers, one of which controls movements and the other, sense
perception. Had he been able to observe these two types of nerve fibers where they
branch from the spinal cord before joining, he might have further refined his
understanding of the sense of touch. As it stands, however, he assigned both types of
functions to the peripheral nerves as if they were composed of one type of tissue.497
Using the hand as an example, he noted: “There was no use for one organ of
apprehension, for another for touch, for lifting and transferring things, and another for
497 For an explanation of the form of these nerves and their relationship to the central nervous system, see
Siegel 1970, 177. Galen’s misunderstanding of the two types of nerve fibers led him to mistaken
diagnoses. For instance, when he observed an injury in which nerve damage resulted in loss of motor
function but not of sensation, he assumed that the act of sensing required less energy than that of
movement, and was therefore still possible for a damaged nerve. See Siegel 1970, 178.
Object Description
| Title | Making sense of sacrifice: Sensory experience in Greco-Roman cult |
| Author | Weddle, Candace Cherie |
| Author email | candaceweddle@gmail.com; weddle@usc.edu |
| Degree | Doctor of Philosophy |
| Document type | Dissertation |
| Degree program | Art History |
| School | College of Letters, Arts and Sciences |
| Date defended/completed | 2011-03-04 |
| Date submitted | 2011 |
| Restricted until | Unrestricted |
| Date published | 2011-04-27 |
| Advisor (committee chair) | Pollini, John |
| Advisor (committee member) |
Yasin, Ann Marie Bitel, Lisa |
| Abstract | Performing a sacrifice was one of the most sensorially full actions undertaken in the Greco-Roman world. The production and control of the correct movements, scents and sounds were prerequisites for summoning, communicating with and propitiating deities. Sacrifice was also ubiquitous, occurring on an almost continual basis as a range of sacrificial activities were celebrated publicly and privately in a variety of locations in urban areas. Cultivating a multi-sensory understanding of the full range of sensory elements that accompanied ancient cult rites – visual and auditory cues, things smelled, tasted and touched - provides a platform for achieving a more thorough knowledge of the meanings of the rites.; This dissertation examines the archaeological, literary and epigraphical evidence for the role of the senses in Greek and Roman sacrifice in order to analyze the social and ritual importance of the senses, the impact of sacrificial rituals within ancient urban spaces, and the sensory experience of the ancient worshiper. Given the ephemeral nature of much of the evidence for sensory elements of worship, as well as the subjectivity inherent in representations of sensory experience in literature and art, this dissertation argues for the necessity of crossing disciplinary boundaries in order to appreciate the sensory impact of ancient sacrifice. Therefore, in addition to utilizing traditional historical and art historical approaches, methodological tools from the field of anthropology and evidence from studies in the animal behavioral sciences and consumer sciences are employed. For example, I suggest that greater understanding of the experience of ancient sacrifice may be acquired through an autoethnographic investigation of modern religious sacrifice. To that end, I analyze my experience of the slaughter of large numbers of bovines during the Islamic Kurban Bayram sacrifices in Istanbul to make suggestions concerning certain elements of the sensory experience of ancient blood sacrifice. I focus not only on the sensory experience of humans participating in (or within range of) sacrifices, but also on that of the animal victims. Given the immense ritual importance of the behavior of sacrificial animals in antiquity, I suggest that it is possible to identify some sensory aspects of the sacrificial process that may have been intentionally manipulated in order to control the reactions of the victims as far as possible.; Particular attention is paid to mundane aspects of the process of sacrifice not often addressed in ancient literary sources or represented in art that would have resulted in notable sensory impacts on areas surrounding urban temples, for example the removal of sacrificial refuse. I conclude not only that these elements of sacrifice formed an important part of the sensory experience of Greco-Roman cult, but also that their effects were more far-reaching – in terms both of how great an area they affected and how long they lasted – than has previously been recognized. Using fresh interdisciplinary approaches to well-known examples of texts and images, this dissertation employs a more visceral approach to the study of the sensory experience of ancient sacrifice than is possible when considering textual and archaeological evidence alone. |
| Keyword | archaeology; autoethnography; cult; Greece; religion; Rome; sacrifice; senses |
| Geographic subject (city or populated place) | Rome |
| Geographic subject (country) | Italy; Greece |
| Coverage date | circa -0600/0600 |
| Coverage era | Greco Roman |
| Language | English |
| Part of collection | University of Southern California dissertations and theses |
| Publisher (of the original version) | University of Southern California |
| Place of publication (of the original version) | Los Angeles, California |
| Publisher (of the digital version) | University of Southern California. Libraries |
| Provenance | Electronically uploaded by the author |
| Type | texts |
| Legacy record ID | usctheses-m3788 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Rights | Weddle, Candace Cherie |
| Repository name | Libraries, University of Southern California |
| Repository address | Los Angeles, California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Filename | etd-Weddle-4363 |
| Archival file | uscthesesreloadpub_Volume48/etd-Weddle-4363.pdf |
Description
| Title | Page 343 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Full text | 325 incredible complexity of nerve function that provides the various sensations we commonly group under the concept of touch (temperature, pressure, pain, etc.), many aspects of which we are only now beginning to understand in detail, Galen relied heavily on the concepts set down by Aristotle, though he refined them extensively by means of scientific observation. In the process of dissection, Galen made many minute and remarkable observations concerning the nervous system. He paid special attention to the peripheral nerves (such as the sciatic nerves in the legs and the nerves that control the hands), which he concluded controlled both motor functions and sensory functions. He was partially correct in this analysis, though he was unable to discern that these nerves are in fact made up of two distinct types of fibers, one of which controls movements and the other, sense perception. Had he been able to observe these two types of nerve fibers where they branch from the spinal cord before joining, he might have further refined his understanding of the sense of touch. As it stands, however, he assigned both types of functions to the peripheral nerves as if they were composed of one type of tissue.497 Using the hand as an example, he noted: “There was no use for one organ of apprehension, for another for touch, for lifting and transferring things, and another for 497 For an explanation of the form of these nerves and their relationship to the central nervous system, see Siegel 1970, 177. Galen’s misunderstanding of the two types of nerve fibers led him to mistaken diagnoses. For instance, when he observed an injury in which nerve damage resulted in loss of motor function but not of sensation, he assumed that the act of sensing required less energy than that of movement, and was therefore still possible for a damaged nerve. See Siegel 1970, 178. |
