History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)

Average customer rating:

Check and see
Suprise! Suprise!
Prescient St Augustine?
Something of a disappointment
Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy..

History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
Anatoly T Fomenko
Manufacturer: Delamere Resources LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 2913621066

Product Description

`History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2` is the second volume of the most explosive and astounding tractate on history ever written - however, every theory it contains, no matter how unorthodox, is backed by rock solid scientific data. The book is easy and pleasant to read; it is well-illustrated, contains hundreds of charts, graphs and illustrations, copies of ancient manuscripts, and countless facts attesting to the falsity of the chronology used nowadays. You will be amazed to discover: - That the chronology universally accepted today and taken for granted is simply wrong; - That ALL methods of dating of ancient sources and artefacts known today are erroneous or non-exact; - That there is not a single document that could be reliably dated earlier than the XIth century; The Author refers to the Middle Ages as the Antiquity and proves mutual superimposition of the Second and the Third Roman Empire, both of which become identified as the respective kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Furthermore, he asserts that the famous reform of the Occidental Church in the XI century by Pope Gregory Hildebrand was the reflection of the XII century reforms of Byzantine emperor Andronicus who in his turn identifies with Jesus Christ. The Trojan war counted by Homer happened only as late as of the XIII century A.D. and the great poet actually lived in XIV century A.D. No stone in history of Antiquity is left unturned. Literally. This book is the beginning of a major correction to the chronology we live with.

Customer Reviews:

Check and see.......2007-06-21

I don't care what other people say of this book. Those affirmig it's fake, they hadn't ever read it. Or have some special reasons to do so. "Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see..." This book won't make you feel comfortable. It'll make you feel free. It'll make you feel you're "not the only one" to feel you'd been lied to for centuries.

Suprise! Suprise!.......2007-03-22

Here is a serie of books which turns "the whole world" upside down. I learned a lot of it and I hope that a new book from A.T. Fomenko will follow very quick. A absolute must for everybody who is interested in history or even a little bit from it.

Prescient St Augustine?.......2006-02-05

We can so far divide the New Chronology into the following three parts:

a) The verifiable theory that proves consensual chronology wrong with the aid of astronomy, statistics and mathematics;

b) The new chronology hypothesis based on a new understanding of known historical facts and the most likely logical explanation of the most obvious inconsistencies inherent in the official version of history;

c) The history conjectures, that is experimental historical reconstructions based on assumptions that the authors believe to make sense in the light of their research and linguistic parallels - void of ironclad factual support to date.

Fomenko's theory complies with the most rigid scientific standards as a whole:

It gives a coherent explanation of what we already know.

- It is consistent: independent lines of inquiry all lead to the same conclusion.

- The predictions it makes are confirmed empirically.

Fomenko goes by the following axioms:

- Chronology is the basis of history;

- Human evolution has always been linear, gradual and irreversible;

- The "cyclic" nature of human civilization is a myth, likewise all the gaps, duplicates, "dark ages" and "renaissances" that we know from consensual history;

- The accumulation of geographical knowledge as reflected in cartography is a gradual and irreversible process;

- The chronological distance between a given manuscript and the events described therein is proportional to the amount of distortions it contains;

- There is no "useless" information in authentic ancient sources.

Why the mainstream historians do not shower mathematician Academician Dr.Prof Fomenko with thanks and laurels?

The Russians:

Because Fomenko asserts that there was no such thing as the Tartar and Mongol invasion followed by three centuries of slavery, providing a formidable body of documental evidence to prove his assertion. The so-called "Tartars and Mongols" were the actual ancestors of the modern Russians, living in a bilingual state with Arabic spoken as freely as Russian. The ancient Russian state was governed by a double structure of civil and military authorities. The hordes were actually professional armies with a tradition of lifelong conscription (the recruitment being the so-called "blood tax"). Their "invasions" were punitive operations against the regions that attempted tax evasion. Fomenko proves that Russian history as we know it today is a blatant forgery concocted by a host of German scientists brought to Russia by the usurper dynasty of the Romanovs, whose ascension to the throne was the result of coup d'état, charged with the mission of making their reign look legitimate. Fomenko proves Ivan the Terrible to be a collation of four rulers, no less. They represented the two rival dynasties - the legitimate rulers and the ambitious upstarts. The winner took it all! Over some 30 years of controversy, Russian historians have made a most remarkable transition - they were initially accusing the young mathematician Fomenko of anticommunist dissident activity and attempts to deface the historical legacy of Soviet Russia; nowadays the middle-aged mathematician is accused of adhering to "pro-communist Russian nationalism" and defacing the proud historical legacy of Great Russia.

The Westerners:

Because Fomenko blows consensual Russian history to smithereens, successfully removing a crucial cornerstone from underneath the otherwise impeccable edifice of World History. Fomenko adds insult to injury, wiping out one by one the Ancient Rome (the foundation of Rome in Italy is dated to the XIV century A. D.), the Ancient Greece and its numerous poleis, which he identifies as the mediaeval crusader settlements on the territory of Greece, and the Ancient Egypt (the pyramids of Giza become dated to the XI-XV century A. D. and identified as the royal cemetery of the Global "Mongolian" Empire, no less). The civilization of the Ancient Egypt is irrefutably dated to the XII-XV century A. D. with the aid of the ancient Egyptian horoscopes cut in stone. He was the first one to decipher and date all such horoscopes, coming up with mediaeval dates in every case. English historians rage at the suggestion that the history of Ancient England was de facto a Byzantine import transplanted to the English soil by the fugitive Byzantine nobility. To reward the English historians who consider themselves the true scribes of World History, the cover of the present book portrays Tintoretto's Jesus Christ crucified on the Big Ben.

The Chinese:

Because Fomenko wipes out the Ancient History of China outright. No such thing. Full point. The compilation of the so-called Ancient Chinese History is reliably datable to the XVII-XVIII century only. It is perfectly recognizable as the Ancient European history, reworked and transcribed in hieroglyphs as yet another historical transplantation, this time performed on the Chinese soil by the loving Jesuit hands. The Chinese are the next in line to go berserk. Chinese history is inevitably bound to get both more ancient and more eventful, proportionally to the growing involvement of China in the world affairs. Chinese historians will keep on finding valid proof of prehistoric Chinese spaceflights until the Politburo orders them to shut up.

The Arabs:

Too bad. Islam with all its key figures is datable to XV-XVI century A. D. Arabic historians may find consolation in the crucial historical role of the Ottoman Empire in the XVI-XVII century. The trouble is that this empire was initially a Christian state, with Hagia Sophia identifiable as Temple of Solomon, according to Fomenko! We can only guess if the acquisition of Alexander the Great (a Macedonian and a Christian) as the founder of the Muslim World Empire will make Fomenko's theories more acceptable to the Arabic mainstream. He certainly does not spare any holy cows at all, claiming The Stone of Qa'Aba in Mecca to contain the lost Arch of the Covenant.

The Divinity:

Despite of reiterated statement that his theory is all about chronology and not Religion, Fomenko stirs up a whole condominium of wasp nests. His collection of anathemas, fatwa, and other condemnations from all parties concerned is already considerable. Little wonder, considering that the history of religions à la Fomenko looks as follows: the pre-Christian period (before the XI century and JC), Bacchic Christianity (XI-XII century, before and after JC), JC Christianity (XII-XVI century) and its subsequent mutations into Orthodox Christianity, the Catholicism, Islam, Buddhism, and so on.

According to Fomenko we know strictly NOTHING about the events that predate the X century A. D.

St Augustin was prescient when he spoke unto us: "be wary of mathematicians, particularly when they speak the truth."

Something of a disappointment.......2005-09-09

After having read the first volume of this expected series of 7 volumes I was triggered by the thesis of these authors that ancient Greek and Roman history did in fact take place in the Middle Ages. So I started studying medieval history of the Middle East - also known as Islamic history - to find out if the opponents of the ancient Greeks and Romans - the Acheamenid Persians, Sassanids, Scythians, Egyptians, etc. - also have their duplicates in medieval history. My search was disappointing: none of the many medieval Islamic dynasties seemed to correspond to the ancient middle eastern rulers.

However, I did find a close correspondence between Herodotus' Persian kings and medieval events:

- the defeat and capture of an Anatolian king - the Lydian Croesus - by the Persian conqueror Cyrus is identical to the defeat and capture of another Anatolian king - sultan Bayezid - by the Asian/Mongol conqueror Tamerlane;
- the Persian conquest of Egypt by the cruel tyrant Cambyses reds almost exactly as the Ottoman conquest of Egypt by Selim the Grim (note the nickname!);
- Darius the Lawgiver of the Persian Empire looks very much alike to Sulayman the Magnificent, the Lawgiver in Islamic history;
- Xerxes, whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by the Greeks at the naval battle of Salamis, looks like Selim II (the Sot) whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by a Spanish-Italian alliance at the naval battle of Lepanto.

I should have expected Fomenko et al. to arrive at similar conclusions, however, they claim that the Persian kings are the alter egos of the Angevin kings of Sicily whose biographies do not contain the exploits of the Persian kings.

The similiarities I indicate lead to the conclusion that Herodotus must have written his Histories at the close of the 16th century. But this is extremely late, given that Herodotus is "the Father of History", so therefore all other "ancient" histories must have been fabricated even later. Yet, the founders of modern chronology - Scaliger and Petavius - laid their foundations also at the close of the 16th century and had the full corpus of ancient histories already at their disposal.

It seems to me that Fomenko has to address these inconsistencies, maybe in the forthcoming 5 volumes?

Another critique of their book is that the correspondencies between different rulers are often based on a superficial comparison of the biographies; upon a more thorough comparison many details appear that do not correspond at all.

Finally, the authors rely heavily on the works of Gregorovius (1821-1891!!) - his medieval histories of Rome and Athens - as the source of medieval history; these works are - at least in the West - hoplessly outdated and have been superceded by more up-to-date works (for instance, Julius Norwich's trilogy on Byzantine history is not even cited).

Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy.........2005-07-30

If you agree with Fomenko that Roman chronology is basically the foundation of the entire edifice of global chronology; you would also certainly agree that despite its numerous gaps and inconsistencies, Roman history is the best-documented field of ancient history, and thus a reference scale. But how well is the actual date of the Eternal City's foundation known?

Firstly, Rome is supposed to have been founded by the Trojans who had to flee after the fall of Troy. Some claim Rome to have been founded by Aeneas and Ulysses shortly after Troy had fallen; others are of the opinion that there was an entire dynasty that ruled for 500 years between the fall of Troy and the foundation of Rome.

Well, that's just an innocent 500 years long misunderstanding compared with what heretic Fomenko says, asserts, proves in his second volume: Second Roman Empire, Third Roman Empire, Biblical Kingdom of Israel, Biblical Kingdom of Judah, Holy Roman Empire are stories about basically same events, written from different points of view at different times. The underlying events have actually taken place during xii-xv cy. These histories have been written and perfected by multitude of highly talented humanist and clerical writers of xiii-xvi cy disguised as "ancients" with glorious names like Homer, Pluto, Thucydides etc..Chronology 2.0 beta..

Historians are kindly invited to report the bugs.

Etruscan Myth, Sacred History, And Legend

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Etruscan Myth, Sacred History, and Legend

Etruscan Myth, Sacred History, And Legend
Nancy Thomson De Grummond
Manufacturer: University of Pennsylvania Museum Publication
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1931707863

Customer Reviews:

Etruscan Myth, Sacred History, and Legend.......2007-06-14

This is a truly excellent study of Etruscan religion. I have read several other books on the subject and have always been rather disappointed by them. This is the first one which adopts a sensible methodology for recovering what we can and cannot surmise about Etruscan mythology given the preservation of art and the paucity of texts. I read each page with great interest and came out feeling that I had actually learned something about the subject, whereas previous books had seemed to get lost in a maze of Greek sources, and missed or even avoided material which seemed to contradict these Greek sources. This author, on the other hand, is interested precisely in what is different from the Greek versions of the iconography, and is able to deduce many salient features of Etruscan religion in doing so. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to gain a deeper knowledge of Etruscan culture.

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Excellent academic survey

The Religion of the Etruscans

Manufacturer: University of Texas Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0292706871

Book Description

"I cannot praise this book sufficiently.... The authors are first-rate scholars in the field; they provide up-to-date information, support, and analysis of the topic. The book offers a great deal of new data and new interpretation in an accessible, clear manner."

—Helen Nagy, Professor of Art, University of Puget Sound

Devotion to religion was the distinguishing characteristic of the Etruscan people, the most powerful civilization of Italy in the Archaic period. From a very early date, Etruscan religion spread its influence into Roman society, especially with the practice of divination. The Etruscan priest Spurinna, to give a well-known example, warned Caesar to beware the Ides of March. Yet despite the importance of religion in Etruscan life, there are relatively few modern comprehensive studies of Etruscan religion, and none in English. This volume seeks to fill that deficiency by bringing together essays by leading scholars that collectively provide a state-of-the-art overview of religion in ancient Etruria.

The eight essays in this book cover all of the most important topics in Etruscan religion, including the Etruscan pantheon and the roles of the gods, the roles of priests and divinatory practices, votive rituals, liturgical literature, sacred spaces and temples, and burial and the afterlife. In addition to the essays, the book contains valuable supporting materials, including the first English translation of an Etruscan Brontoscopic Calendar (which guided priests in making divinations), Greek and Latin sources about Etruscan religion (in the original language and English translation), and a glossary. Nearly 150 black and white photographs and drawings illustrate surviving Etruscan artifacts and inscriptions, as well as temple floor plans and reconstructions.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent academic survey.......2006-06-10

This is an excellent compilation of essays by scholars in the field published this year. Edited by Nancy Thomson de Grummond, the book covers all aspects of Etruscan religion, including gods, inscriptions, role of priests, grave sites, votive offerings, etc. Black and white photos and drawings on good quality paper help the reader to follow the text.

The book appears to be designed for an academic audience, but the educated lay person can follow most of the arguments. An extensive glossary helps, as do appendices on the Etruscan calender and selected Latin and Greek literary texts.

The only drawback for me is the large size of the book: it is awkward to hold. However, this is a minor flaw in an otherwise excellent book.

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A wonderful book
Etruscan Myths

Etruscan Myths (Legendary Past Series)
Larissa Bonfante , and Judith Swaddling
Manufacturer: University of Texas Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0292706065

Book Description

The Etruscans were a people of sophisticated culture and technology who lived in the area between Florence and Rome. Their civilization flourished for nearly a thousand years before being subsumed by the Roman Empire, but they left a substantial legacy to western civilization. In antiquity they were known as a wealthy, luxury-loving people, fond of banqueting and music and deeply religious. They were highly literate, but their literature has not survived, so we turn to Etruscan art to tell us about their mythology and beliefs. Their plentiful, spontaneous art also tells us a great deal about their lives and about the importance of women in their aristocratic society. Most informative of their own distinctive and colorful beliefs are their interpretations of scenes from Greek mythology, reflecting the importance of goddesses and demons in their religion, as well as scenes of the human sacrifice they practiced. This book serves as an excellent introduction to the world of the Etruscans and their mythology and is plentifully illustrated from the vast collection of the British Museum and other international museums.

Customer Reviews:

A wonderful book.......2006-11-14

This is a wonderful book, particularly for people who are fascinated by the Etruscans but frustrated by the lack of any Etruscan literature on myths. To make up for this deficit, Bonfante and Swaddling cleverly draw on the abundance of surviving Etruscan art to illuminate Etruscan myths. As the Etruscans admited Greek myths and found them expressive, they adopted and depicted Greek myths tailored to their own use. The authors show which Greek myths they chose, how they adapted them for their own purposes and the different slant they often introduced. They point out what is special about the Etruscan myths and how they differ from the Greek prototypes in their emphasis on female deities, couples, sex, children and families. Hints are explored about local legends. One chapter discusses the Etruscan interest in cruelty, violence and death, another details the Etruscan panthron, giving names, functions, personalities and stories. Throughout, there are beautiful illustrations. The seemingly impossible task of recovering myths when the words to tell them have been lost is triumphantly achieved in this short but elegant and informative book.

Etruscan Myths.......2006-10-04

I found this book to be somewhat disappointing. In the first chapter the authors attempt to dispell the myth that the Etruscans are so terribly mysterious and enigmatic, implying that we indeed know a lot about them. Yet the book does not really confirm this point, since all of the chapters simply launch into Greek mythology, saying that the Etruscans borrowed it. One continues searching in vain for what might be any original Etruscan mythology. The authors have interesting things to say about the unique iconographical differences between Greek and Etruscan portrayals of these myths, but one is left very unsatisfied, desiring to know if there is any original Etruscan myth known to anyone in the world. This would have been far less frustrating if the authors had explained up front the apparent lack of originality in Etruscan mythology, or that the Etruscans seem not to have had any mythology of their own. But instead they keep leading the reader along, and one remains hopeful that he might learn something other than Greek mythology in this book. One comes away with a few Etruscan names of Greek and Roman deities, and a couple of iconographic features that are uniquely Etruscan, but nowhere in the book has the reader learned anything that can be accurately labeled "Etruscan Myth."

Religion in Ancient Etruria (Wisconsin Studies in Classics)

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A"must-have", highly accessible account for any reader interested in better understanding the nuances of an ancient civilization

Religion in Ancient Etruria (Wisconsin Studies in Classics)
Jean-Rene Jannot
Manufacturer: University of Wisconsin Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0299208443

Book Description

This lively translation of Devins, Dieux et Démons is the first English-language edition of Jean-René Jannot’s highly informative examination of Etruscan religion. Jannot tackles this elusive subject within three major constructs—death, ritual, and the nature of the gods—and presents recent discoveries in an accessible format. Jane K. Whitehead’s translation updates Jannot’s innovative text and introduces readers of all types—students, scholars, and the general audience—to this thorough overview of ancient Etruscan beliefs, including the afterlife, funerary customs, and mythology.
Provocative insights and thoughtful discussions contribute to an understanding of the prophetic nature of Etruscan culture. Jannot investigates the elaborate systems of defining space and time that so distinctly characterize this ancient society. Religion in Ancient Etruria offers a unique perspective that illuminates the origins of some of our own "modern" religious beliefs.
This updated edition includes more than 100 illustrations that demonstrate early temples, statues, mirrors, tablets, and sculptures.

1998 French edition, Picard

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A"must-have", highly accessible account for any reader interested in better understanding the nuances of an ancient civilization.......2006-02-03

The first English translation of history and archaeology professor emeritus Jean-Rene Jannot's "Devins, Dieux et Demons", Religion In Ancient Etruria is a masterful examination of Etruscan religion, closely scrutinizing Etruscan beliefs with regard to death, ritual, and the nature of the gods. Expertly translated by Jane K. Whitehead into a new updated edition, the text offers students, scholars, and general audiences alike an overview of ancient Etruscan beliefs, funerary customs, concepts of an afterlife, and mythology. More than 100 black-and-white illustrations including photographs of Etruscan artifacts add a visual dimension this heavily researched and footnoted perspective. A"must-have", highly accessible account for any reader interested in better understanding the nuances of an ancient civilization's beliefs and the connections between those beliefs and modern theologies.

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A great inquiry into the diverse nature of the Etruscans.
19th Century Rediscovery
Alot of info that would be lost...
The Pre-Gardnerian Craft
More of the Best

Etruscan Roman Remains
Charles Godfrey Leland
Manufacturer: Phoenix Publishing (WA)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0919345298

Book Description

Leland was sixty-seven years old when he informed a family confidante and colleague that he had stumbled upon "all the principal deities of the Etruscans still existing as spirits or folletti in the Romagna area of Italy--I believe I am the first to find out this." Leland had already published five books on gypsy lore and language, including his discovery and description, with a laboriously compiled vocabulary, of Shelta, hitherto a wholly oral tongue. When the present Etruscan book was finished, Leland regarded it as his greatest work, "ten times more remarkable" than Gypsy Sorcery and Fortune-telling, his unique collection, published a few years before. Even "finding Shelta was a trifle to this," he wrote ecstatically of the Etruscan discoveries.

Customer Reviews:

A great inquiry into the diverse nature of the Etruscans........2005-04-07

Leland provides great insight into suppressed information related to the old Etruscan Paganism of the Early Roman Empire and Italy. The first part of the book contains descriptive insight into over 60 Gods and Goblins of the old religion, whereas, most other texts only contain up to 25 and often confuse the details. A greater number of suppressed names and deities are discussed in detail in this work, then in any other text I have researched in relation to this old way of life. The second part offers various Incantations, Divinations, Medicines, and Amulet Creation. The book is heavily illustrated which is another thing that is uncommon in books on this subject. This book is highly recommended for anyone studying the occult, and makes for a great desk reference for followup research.

19th Century Rediscovery.......2002-03-05

This is a wonderful addition to any home library for anyone interested in the religion of Antiquity and Italian folklore. All of Charles Leland's writings are wonderful, but this book in particular is of great merit. Leland travled the Italian country-side and recorded many of the tales from rural folks, some of which still practice the "old religion" both overtly and covertly within the Roman Catholic structure. It is through his recording of these stories that we can see the evolution and continued existence of the Gods of the Ancients. This is a must read for any serious mythographer, folklorist or modern day observer of the Old Ways.

Alot of info that would be lost..........2002-02-25

This book is really interesting in the fact that had not Leland gathered all this information it would most likely be lost to us today. I would not however recommend it as a BOS to follow ,mainly because we do not know the real context of these spells. Even though Leland has written them down they are from another time and one we are no longer a part of. This is just my opinion and I recommend if you do use a spell from this book you should know why you are using a certain herb, object etc. and WHO you are calling on!Just a precaution I would take. Ciao!

The Pre-Gardnerian Craft.......2001-04-16

This book is a classic text on the "Old Religion." The author Charles Leland was a folklorist performing field studies into Italian Witchcraft during the 1800s. He describes witches as worshippers of the goddess Diana, and refers to a specific group as the "good witches" of Benevento. Leland points out that "bad witches" also exist and he includes several spells to illustrate this.

Etruscan Roman Remains carries a feel of antiquity as Leland introduces ancient lore and its revelance to the witches of Old Italy. This book was the first of its kind to present material drawn directly from people claiming to be witches during the 19th century. Along with Leland's Aradia; Gospel of the Witches, this book presents the foundation of many concepts now found in modern Wicca, including a full moon sabbat, the worship of a god & goddess by witches, ritual use of cakes and wine, and witches as healers and magic users. After reading Leland's accounts, there can be little doubt that Gardnerian Wicca was founded, at least in part, upon the writings of Leland on Italian witchcraft.

In addition, Etruscan Roman Remains contains a great deal of information on old superstitions, folk spirits, and folk magic. This book is an important addition to any library on Witchcraft.

More of the Best.......2000-02-14

Another fine example of the work of Leland, and an excellent source document for those who seek pre-Neo Wiccan non-fluffiness. Craft with real teeth for the serious only.

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An invitation to discovery
Tedious, Spiteful, and Sparse with Facts
An enduring classic

Archaic Roman Religion, Volume 2
Georges Dumézil
Manufacturer: The Johns Hopkins University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0801854814

Book Description

When St. Paul and St. Peter reached Rome they encountered a state-sponsored religion that had been established for centuries. Amid the shrines and temples of Rome, the Romans sought to preserve and strengthen a religion especially suited to the ambitious city. But Roman religion had also proved permeable to many influences, from Greece, Egypt, Persia, and other parts of Italy. What then was truly Roman, and what had Romans done with their borrowings to stamp them with Roman character?

By exhaustive study of texts, inscriptions, and archaeology of Roman sacred places, Dumezil traces the formation of archaic Roman religion from Indo-European sources through the development of the rites and beliefs of the Roman republic. He describes a religion that was not only influenced by the other religions with which it came into contact, but influenced them as well, in mutual efforts to distinguish one nation from another. Even so, certain continuities were sustained in order to achieve a religion that crossed generations and ways of life. The worship of certain gods became the special concerns of certain parts of society, all of which needed attention to assure Rome's success in war, civil administration, and the production of food and goods.

Customer Reviews:

An invitation to discovery.......2002-11-30

... The beauty of the style, the fascinating glimpses of worlds beyond - the Vedic, Teutonic, Celtic and other data deployed casually and yet much to the point, the intellectual penetration and the ability to see common threads in different things and differences in similar things - riveted my interest for ever on the history of culture.

It is true that the English version does the style of the original no favours - one must remember that the anthropologist Levy-Strauss, a man well able to judge, compared Dumezil's style to that of Voltaire: probably the highest compliment a French writer can pay to another. However, the whole is still eminently readable.

It demands, however, a certain kind of reader: one who does not mind being challenged, who does not mind being introduced to unknown and obscure facts, who has no need to be cradled in his or her own convinctions, and who does not mind a certain kind of pugnacity. For there is no doubt that Dumezil, this courtly old French gentleman with exquisite olde-worlde manners, who charmed almost everyone who came into contact with him - including myself - was a fighter. His presence in the academic world was a solitary and battling one; he once wrote to me that he utterly refused to become a "chef d'ecole" and form his own academic party (this is perhaps the reason why latter-day Dumezilians are numerically rather scarce and academically not too impressive). Certainly the bites he takes out of scholars with opposing views are merciless; but one has to say that he always fought fair and face to face, that he rarely attacked anyone who had not attacked him first (comparative Indo-European studies are still today a rather contentious field) and that he never would have considered sinking to the level of the famous historian who once organized a congress "about" Dumezil's own work, or rather against it, without so much as letting Dumezil or any of his friends know about it. Now that is indeed base.

Be that as it may, this book is a classic that will last as long as the work of Mommsen, or Tocqueville, or Gibbon. As an introduction to archaic Roman religion, as a systematic textbook, it may perhaps disappoint, since it neither covers all the main points systematically nor leaves out matters that interest the author but that are not, of themselves, equally important. But as an inspiration to further research, as an introduction to the idea that history is not a collection of data but an intellectual adventure, as an intellectual adventure in itself, it is magnificent. Twenty years after reading it for the first time, I went back to it, having, in the meantime, read, written and published myself about archaic Roman religion; and, guess what? Not only was the book as fresh as new, but I immediately found a whole series of new ideas and areas to develop, waiting for me to be ready to recognize them.

Tedious, Spiteful, and Sparse with Facts.......2001-07-26

There is certainly a need, still, for a book that covers Italian religion while excluding Greek mythology to the greatest extent possible. Unfortunately, the English version of Georges Dumezil's work has drawbacks that cause it to deserve a 'pass.' A good editor could trim Dumezil's two (paperback) volumes down to one by removing his comments on the merits of other authors, and greatly improve the text by correcting the bad English and translating the Latin quotes. Until that is done, it would be more rewarding to read a different book.

A great deal of "Archaic Roman Religion," especially the 134 pages of the "Preliminary Remarks" section, is wasted by Dumezil's tedious denigrations of other scholars' works. Some of his put-downs may have been deserved, but Dumezil published in 1966. There is no point spending time today reading slams of books published early in the 1900s, or late 1800s. The only relief is to make a game of counting how many of the same sins which Dumezil decries that Dumezil commits, and how often.

The text is very long: almost 700 pages, but it is sparse on substance, with a fair amount of repetition. There is not much material to go on in the subject of Roman religion once the Greek influence is weeded out. Dumezil brings that point home well and often. But that suggests that a shorter book is in order.

About three-quarters of the quotes of the Roman writers are given in Latin without translation. This may have been excusable for readers of the original French edition, who may have been better able to guess their way through the Latin. It certainly not good enough for English readers; Latin is rarely taught in schools in English-speaking countries. Aggravating the difficulty, some of the untranslated Latin words are archaic forms which will not be found in small Latin-English dictionaries.

The quality of the English translation is poor sometimes, unlike most of the book which is written clearly, if pedantically. It seems as if either the translator Philip Krapp, or the author Dumezil (who revised the translation), naively tried to use English words which more closely resemble the original French. The choice of words in these few cases is startlingly awkward.

One of Dumezil's lasting contribution to the study of mythology is a detailed comparison of many early European religions to the Indian Vedas; greatly to his credit this is nolonger rare. In the more than 30 years since Dumezil published, most other authors have learned to do the same.

In "Archaic Roman Religion" Dumezil unfortunately has obsessed on the "Three Functions" theory. It's really half a book about his theory, rather than being all about the Romans. Frequent failed shoe-horns of Roman religion into tripartidism were anoying for me. Dumezil applied the theory convincingly to the first two functions (magic + government, and protection + conquest) but seems to fail with the third function (nourishment + fertility + prosperity). This idea that ancient peoples recognized exactly and only three distinct parts in their society and religion was overused. Today, I think an equally brilliant mythographer would use the Three Functions theory sparingly. Or would conform the number of social divisions or functions to the beliefs and practices of the Romans' religion instead of conforming Roman beliefs to this modern notion.

An enduring classic.......2000-06-14

Dumezil's "Archaic Roman Religion" is a landmark work in the field of ancient religious practice. While some of Dumezil's theories may be considered out-of-date, these volumes are a vast resource of information about religious practices in the Italian peninsula. Dumezil presents a strong case that the Roman state religion evolved from domestic religious practices, combined with some iconographic and conceptual elements borrowed from the neighboring Etruscans. A strong antidote to the popular conception of Roman religion as a "rip-off" of Greek practices, this work clearly explains key features of Roman religious thought. Here the reader may find a wealth of information on the Roman deities, public festivals, private devotions, funeral customs, priesthood, and much more. It is fascinating to read straight through, as well as being an indispensible reference in comparative religion.

Vulca the Etruscan (Journey Through Time Series)

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Vulca the Etruscan (Journey Through Time Series)
Roberta Angeletti
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Book Description

Robbie and his dog Pip are playing ball right next to that sacred and mysterious place--the Necropolis. A mighty kick from Robbie sends the ball flying over the hill and out of sight. Looking for it, the boy and Pip stumble across the entrance to a strangely painted Etruscan tomb. They go down the narrow, dark stairway and end up in a square room whose walls are covered with brightly-colored paintings of vases, leopards, and people in funny robes. Pip finds a pair of mysterious wooden pipes on the floor. Robbie plays them, bringing Vulca--a man in the wall painting--to life. Vulca admits he took Robbie's ball. In return, he gives Robbie and Pip a tour of the Etruscan tombs and introduces them to the other people in the wall painting. As a thank you, Robbie lets Vulca take the ball into the wall painting with him, to puzzle other modern visitors to the tomb. A three-page appendix at the end of the book goes back through the ages to tell us more about the mysterious Etruscans--what they did for a living, what clothes they wore, what games they liked, and what language they spoke. It also defines such intriguing words as necropolis, haruspices, augurs, and lucumo.

The Bronze Liver of Piacenza: Analysis of a Polytheistic Structure (Dutch Monographs of Ancient History and Archaeology, Vol 2)

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The Bronze Liver of Piacenza: Analysis of a Polytheistic Structure (Dutch Monographs of Ancient History and Archaeology, Vol 2)
L. B. Van Der Meer
Manufacturer: J C Gieben
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