The Lost Lover of Aphrodite
Sponsored by Spokane Society
AIA Society Event: Spokane
Wednesday, April 27, 2011 - 6:30pm
Location:
Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture
2316 W. 1st Avenue
Spokane WA 99201
United States
Prof. Georgia B. Bazemore (Eastern Washington University) Modern viewers are quite familiar with the late Classical images of Aphrodite which pair her with the child deity Eros, also known as Cupid. But earlier tradition, especially outside of Athens, paired Aphrodite with another figure more fitting with her role as the Goddess of Sexual Desire, that of her young lover, Adonis. Dr. Bazemore draws upon her decades of research and excavation of the Adonis temple at Paphos, in Cyprus, known to Homer as the birthplace and home to Aphrodite herself. Dr. Bazemore will discuss the Eastern, especially Cypriote, origins of this demi-god, and show that the worship of Adonis focused upon rituals of death-and-resurrection, which were primarily practiced by women in the early spring. The spread of the Adonis cult into Greece will be examined through the evidence of his worship preserved in the words of the ancient Greek poets.
Website: http://www.gonzaga.edu/academics/colleges+and+schools/college-of-arts-and-scienc...
Contact:
Andrew Goldman
goldman@gonzaga.edu
509-313-6691
