Finds from Miletus XXXIII

Scarabs in Faience and Steatite from the Bothros, Sanctuary of Aphrodite on Zeytintepe (›Olive Hill‹)

Resumen

In this article a detailed catalogue and commentary on a select number of scarabs of Egyptian and Near Eastern type is given which were excavated from the Bothros on Zeytintepe between 2009 and 2010 (earlier finds of this type from both the surface excavations and the Bothros have already been published by G. Hölbl). They are rare and comparatively precious objects, which actually had a longer lifespan, as we can tell from the dated comparanda, than the other faience objects – amulets, figurines, and ointment vessels – which were found with them. Their importance can be demonstrated by the copies they inspired in the localized Aegean production of scarabs, a number of which are also illustrated and discussed. These small objects began to be deposited in the Sanctuary in around 700–690 B.C., though many of them are of earlier date, and they give us an insight into the wide-reaching trading links which existed in the Middle Sea. They also strongly suggest a specific role for the Sanctuary, dedicated to the goddess of Sex/Love and we may suppose, to Aphrodite in her role as the patron of Sailors – Euploia (Good Sailing): both sailors and women must have been associated with these offerings.