Gunnel Ekroth

Gunnel Ekroth is professor in Classical archaeology and ancient history at Uppsala University. Her research focuses on ancient Greek religion, from a practical and theoretical perspective, integrating ancient texts, inscriptions, iconography and archaeological remains, including animal bones. She has worked extensively on animal sacrifice, sanctuary space and divine-human interaction.

The project

Title: Space, sacrifice and the temenos. Divine-human interaction in Greek sanctuaries

"Ancient Greek sanctuaries were set apart for the gods and their worship, and this space, the temenos, was perceived as divine property. Humans would visit sanctuaries to communicate with the gods through sacrifice and dedications, and they were also the caretakers and administrators of divine space. Still, even if the temenos functioned as a space for communication with the divine world, the interaction between immortals and mortals was not without friction. Ancient sources show that human access to, and presence in, sanctuaries could cause pollution and damage, and therefore had to be regulated. Even if the gods themselves could not be polluted, their sanctuaries could, and the ancient Greek view makes clear that it was the duty of mortal caretakers to assure purity and proper upkeep of the precinct, and to prevent human transgressions. My current research explores divine-human interaction in Greek sanctuaries and the perception and use of sanctuary space. To what degree were humans present inside temene, and what space and which installations particularly catered to human needs? Did the spatial arrangement of a temenos aim to unite or separate gods and humans? How did the establishment and use of temene relate to the ancient Greek notions of the sacred as both "given by gods" and constructed by humans? Was everything in a temenos sacred to the same degree, and how did humans inside temene impact the status of this space as sacred or even as profane?"

Hosting institution: École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE)

Selective Bibliography

• ‘Citizens as drinkers? A glimpse from the countryside of the Archaic Argolid’, in Politeia and koinônia. Studies in ancient Greek history in honour of Josine Blok, eds. V. Pirenne-Delforge & M. Węcowski, Leiden 2023, 46-64.
•  ‘A room of one’s own? Exploring the temenos concept as divine property’, in The stuff of the gods. The material aspects of religion in ancient Greece (ActaAth-4°, 59), eds. M. Haysom, M. Mili & J. Wallensten, Stockholm 2024, 69-82.
• From snout to tail. Exploring the Greek sacrificial animal from the literary, epigraphical, iconographical, archaeological and zooarchaeological evidence (ActaAth-4°, 60) eds. J.-M. Carbon & G. Ekroth, Stockholm 2024.
• “The pen fell from my hand when I was in my eighty-sixth year.” Revisiting the work of Martin P. Nilsson (ActaAth-8°, 24), eds. J. Wallensten & G. Ekroth, Stockholm 2024.
• Logistics in Greek sanctuaries. Exploring the human experience of visiting the gods (Monumenta Graeca et Romana, 30), eds., J.M. Barringer, G. Ekroth & D. Scahill, Leiden, 2025.