Minoan Snake Goddess

Sculptor Analysis – Minoan Snake Goddess
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Sculptor Analysis – Minoan Snake Goddess
Minoan religion is unknown. Because the Minoan language has never been deciphered, we only have archaeological evidence of the Minoan religion. Shrines were built on mountaintops and inside palaces for religious activities. Scenes of religious ceremonies show priests and priestesses, bulls, trees, columns, and outdoor shrines. Trees and pillars were revered in spring and harvest celebrations.
A goddess or priestess holding snakes is another Minoan image. The meaning of the little statue of the Snake Goddess is unknown. The "Master" or "Mistress of Beasts" motif appears earlier in the ancient Near East and later in Greek art. Associated with fertility and agriculture in the East, snakes had no bad connotations as they did in the West. This frontal figure wears a conical flounced skirt. On her headdress, a cat sits, and her breasts are exposed. After firing, glass paste is applied to earthenware and other ceramic vessels to produce bright colors and a shiny sheen of the figurine.
The elegant, fashionable costumes, physical gracefulness, sensitive yet forthright personalities, sophisticated tastes and love of luxury, refined manners, and worldly ways can all be seen as embodying many of the Minoan's perceived and admired characteristics. Without written sources (or at least written sources that provide any real insight into the culture), little in the archaeological record contradicts these fondly-held impressions that are derived mainly in response to what we see in physical remains of the Minoans - in figurines such as the "Snake Goddess," in frescoes and painted pottery, and in architecture - as well as what we know about their culture. No fortified citadels, fortresses, temples to the gods, massive public sculpture, a strong indication of a hierarchically organized civilization ruled by kings and priests, no boasting inscriptions. The visual evidence alone describes an attractive, easy-going society centered on large labyrinthine palace-like buildings that seem to have served primarily, judging from the vast storage areas, as collection and distribution centers for a well-organized system of local mercantile exchange. Who the leaders were is unknown, although evidence suggests that women dominated Minoan religion and culture. The "Snake Goddess" is a crucial piece of proof that women controlled Minoan culture. Sir Arthur Evans set the groundwork for this view. Because of his influence on James Frazer's The Golden Bough (1890), Evans created a concept of Minoan religion centered on a powerful fertility goddess whose youthful male consort died and was reborn annually, symbolizing the decay and regrowth of plants. When the "Snake Goddess" was discovered in 1903, Evans not only identified her as a "goddess" but also claimed that the Minoans worshipped her as an aspect of the Mother Goddess. Evans, therefore, produced evidence for a matrilineal, or perhaps matriarchal, Minoan civilization (German, 2021).
The Serpent Goddess was a Minoan deity associated with snake worship. She is also known as the Minoan Household Goddess because of her snake characteristic. The...