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In the western chamber, two skeletons were found on the floor, one in the south west corner of the room This body was of a 28 year old female, because the average life expectancy in ancient civilisations was around 55, she would have been a middle aged woman. And because the Minoan women had an almost equal station in life in those days, she would have almost certainly been a high priestess of some sort.
The other skeleton was that of a male, he was aged in his late thirties, and about 180 cm tall, and powerfully built, he was lying on his back with his hands covering his face, as if to protect it. The tall man had a ring made of iron and silver on the little finger of his left hand and on his wrist was an engraved seal of “exceptional artistic merit”, this would have obviously been very valuable. His legs were broken and his body was found near the centre of the room next to a platform, at the base of the platform was a trough.
On top of the platform another body was found. This was a body of an 18 year old male; he was found in the foetal position, lying on his right side. Amongst the bones was found an ornately engraved knife, it was 40 cm long and weighing more than 400g. Each side of the blade had an incised rendering of an animal head, the snout and tusks of a boar, ears like butterfly wings and slanted eyes like a fox. His legs were forced back so that his heels were almost touching his thigh, indicating that they were tied there. His jaw was closed; this is unusual because the jaw usually sags open after death. After a laboratory examination, it was revealed that the bones on the left side of his body were white, and the bones on the right side were black. It is a well known forensic fact that when a body with its blood supply intact is burned, the bones turn black. If the blood is drained before burning, the bones will be white. This shows that the priest and priestess were only half way through the ceremony when the body caught fire.
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Originally posted by Mkoll
The Minoans are probably my favorite ancient civilization, and I didn't know they did human sacrifice, but it really doesn't surprise me. at least they slit his throat before the burnt him, it seems
Originally posted by Hanslune
Originally posted by Mkoll
The Minoans are probably my favorite ancient civilization, and I didn't know they did human sacrifice, but it really doesn't surprise me. at least they slit his throat before the burnt him, it seems
Yes the speculation is that the sacrifice was being made to appease the gods due to increased earthquakes and pre-explosion eruptions from Thera. In this case the sacrifice angered the gods - or they didn't think much of that young man!
Originally posted by Hanslune
It is a well known forensic fact that when a body with its blood supply intact is burned, the bones turn black. If the blood is drained before burning, the bones will be white. This shows that the priest and priestess were only half way through the ceremony when the body caught fire.
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Originally posted by Omphale
reply to post by Byrd
Golly gosh...now there's a coincidence for ya.
And even more obvious...except for the age...which is why I was going for castration.
edit on 31-12-2011 by Omphale because: (no reason given)
Originally posted by Byrd
Actually, given the location of the temple, I wonder how likely it was that the burning was caused by a nuee ardente lahar or just fire from the volcanic eruption. The iron ring on the finger of the first man is particularly interesting -- he must have had very high status to wear that.
Originally posted by Byrd
Originally posted by Omphale
reply to post by Byrd
Golly gosh...now there's a coincidence for ya.
And even more obvious...except for the age...which is why I was going for castration.
edit on 31-12-2011 by Omphale because: (no reason given)
Actually, castration on humans was generally done before the person reached puberty -- unless they were a war captive or the castration was voluntary. In either case, that's not the position you use when castrating a human male.
Originally posted by Byrd
reply to post by Omphale
From what I've read about the subject of voluntary castration, it was performed by the men themselves, and they wouldn't have tied their ankles to their thighs. Now -- what I read was from a different culture in the area, so I don't know (nor does anyone else) how it was done. Human sacrifice as a religious ritual in the Middle East was relatively rare (compared to the Mayans and Aztecs, where mass slaughter of humans was an acceptable sacrifice.) The Bible documents some cases... I'm not sure how many sites have been identified as major human sacrifice sites.
I know there's lots of RUMORED (but undocumented) sites. Can't say for sure about documented sites.
Originally posted by Omphale
Thanks for that...and that is also what I have read about male castrations, of the voluntary kind in that region...but, have you not found that the more structured the society becomes, the more regimented and formal, the ritual practices becomes?
I wonder if this is an example of this...and that voluntary became, shall we say, less voluntary....?
I'm of the opinion that certainly by the time of the 'classical' Athenian period, that much of the anecdotal evidence that we have of human sacrifice can also be, equally, interpreted as either medical investigation and surgical procedures, or post-mortem dissections. As well as deaths as a result of ritual castrations. There is little real evidence of any human sacrifice, even the practice of haruspicy seems to have been confined to executed prisoners or others deemed 'outsiders', rather than a ritual offering from within (including slaves who can be seen as a possessions and therefore of value in that respect).
The Aztecs practice of sacrifice was a literal relationship between the nutrients of death and the fertility of the earth.
Particularly if you look at the references to the cult of Cybele, they were serving a function within Roman society that went beyond superstition, it was a practical function whatever it was.
Heh. I may start having to look up research papers on this as well. Hans has a great deal of knowledge about these areas.
Originally posted by Byrd
Often it comes down to "how much do they believe in magic."
Originally posted by Byrd
The only situations of this that I know are documented are the castrati of early opera fame. Wikipedia has a good sourced article on eunuchs which says it was also carried out on the unwilling (generally slaves) and mentions (modern) examples of it being performed on boys to sell into the brothels.
Hindu philosophy has the concept of a third sex or third gender (tritiya-prakriti – literally, "third nature"). This category includes a wide range of people with mixed male and female natures such as bisexuals, transgenders, homosexuals, the intersexed, and so on.[26] Such persons are not considered fully male or female in traditional Hinduism, being a combination of both. They are mentioned as third sex by nature (birth)[27] and are not expected to behave like ordinary men and women. They often keep their own societies or town quarters, perform specific occupations (such as masseurs, hairdressers, flower-sellers, domestic servants, etc.) and are generally attributed a semi-divine status. Their participation in religious ceremonies, especially as crossdressing dancers and devotees of certain temple gods/goddesses, is considered auspicious in traditional Hinduism. Some Hindus believe that third-sex people have special powers allowing them to bless or curse others. In Hinduism, the universal creation is honored as unlimitedly diverse and the recognition of a third sex is simply one more aspect of this understanding.[28]
In 2008, the state of Tamil Nadu recognised the "Third Gender"; with its civil supplies department giving in the ration card a provision for a new sex column as 'T', distinct from the usual 'M' and 'F' for males and females respectively. This was the first time that authorities anywhere in India have officially recognised the third gender.[29]
Originally posted by Byrd
I don't know, myself. It's not a subject I have done any research on. I'm familiar with the legends, and in general with the society and history but I did not get the impression that it was a common or standard practice.
there is a secret world of medicine, that seems to be frightening and threatening to all sorts of people.