Themis : A Study of the Social Origins of Greek Religion

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1922 Book. Illus. by Gilbert Murray, F. M. Cornford. Good. Hardcover. 2nd Ed. With an Excursus on the Ritual Forms Preserved in Greek Tragedy By Gilbert Murray and a Chapter on the Origin of the Olympic Games By F. M. Cornford. Drawing upon a range of disciplines including anthropology, classical studies, archaeology and psychology, Jane Ellen Harrison's Themis pieced together the origins of early Greek religion. One of 'Britain's first female professional 'career academics'...and the ideas espoused on Greek rituals and myths in Themis remain influential today. This revolutionary study traces Themis back through history, as a matriarchal tribal goddess. Addressing areas including magic, sacrifice and the origin of the Olympic games, Harrison applies archaeological discoveries to the interpretation of Greek religion. Including a detailed preface and explanatory notes, this revised second edition of 1927 is described by Harrison as 'addressed not so much to the specialist as to the thinker generally'. xxv.559p. Illus. index, Text block tight and complete, some edge stains. in somewhat shelfworn shabby covers.