Atteone in contesto. Il mito, l'acqua e riti di transizione femminili nella Sicilia greca

Abstract

The study considers some representations of the myth of Actaeon in Sicily, that draw a clear geography of the mythic theme in the island, in close connection with water and female transition rites. In particular, it focuses on some louteria from Selinus and Agrigento (from the Sanctuary of chthonic deities), that report this subject, and a lekanis rim from Himera, coming from a supposed sacred area within the residential area, where rites of passage were performed. The only other evidence of the theme in the island consists in a fragment of Attic krater from a Geloan tomb, apart from the well known metope of Selinus. The recontextualization of the evidence allows us to understand better the valences of the Boeotian myth in connection with water and the different traditions, versions and readings of the story, exploited from time to time in various contexts of the Greek Sicily.