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The Throw of Isis-Aphrodite: a rare decorated knucklebone from the Metropolitan Museum of New York

Nifosi, Ada (2022) The Throw of Isis-Aphrodite: a rare decorated knucklebone from the Metropolitan Museum of New York. The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, 108 (1-2). pp. 177-189. ISSN 0307-5133. (doi:10.1177/03075133221137365) (KAR id:91673)

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Abstract

Knucklebones were ubiquitous objects in the ancient world and they had several meanings, from gaming pieces to oracular dice. The study of a new unpublished decorated knucklebone from Graeco-Roman Egypt with a ‘Baubo’ image of a squatting naked woman, preserved at the Metropolitan Museum of New York, offers the opportunity to explore the variety of contexts of use of decorated knucklebones in this area: from play and divination to Orphic rituals and local religious festivals. Its decorated sides represent three Graeco-Egyptian deities whose meanings and magical interactions can be understood through the comparison with other Romano-Egyptian gaming pieces, terracottas, magical gems and papyri.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1177/03075133221137365
Uncontrolled keywords: knucklebones; Baubo; Isis-Aphrodite; Eros; Ganymedes; Kronos; Harpokrates
Subjects: C Auxiliary Sciences of History > CC Archaeology
D History General and Old World > DE The Greco-Roman World
N Visual Arts
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Arts and Humanities > Department of Classical and Archaeological Studies
Funders: University of Kent (https://ror.org/00xkeyj56)
Depositing User: Ada Nifosi
Date Deposited: 21 Nov 2021 12:21 UTC
Last Modified: 27 Feb 2023 12:28 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/91673 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)
Nifosi, Ada: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3519-6288
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