Theoroi and Initiates in Samothrace: The Epigraphical Evidence (review)

The island of Samothrace has yielded a substantial number of inscribed documents connected to its sanctuary of the Great Gods, particularly informative for two important groups—ambassadors (theoroi) and initiates into the Mysteries (mystai and epoptai). Those theoric and initiate records can now be examined in one place. Previously scattered in epigraphic corpora, an excavation volume, and various journals, newly re-edited texts are brought together and contextualized in this organized monograph, a revision of Dimitrova's 2002 dissertation at Cornell University. Some of the texts are presented here for the first time, and several have been published only recently (usually with substantial contribution by Dimitrova). The updated presentation of these texts will be especially useful for scholars interested in epigraphy, ancient religion, interstate relations, and prosopography.

The book is divided into two main parts: inscriptions listing theoroi and those listing initiates. Each catalogue is preceded by a brief chapter that provides both a general introduction and a more specific overview relating to Samothrace. These treatments are by no means exhaustive nor are they intended to be; instead, they offer a succinct look at the current state of some very difficult issues, and for that reason are worth reading even on their own. The epigraphic catalogues cover material that spans a wide range geographically, temporally, and linguistically (Latin and bilingual inscriptions are included alongside the Greek, and many lists contain Thracian names). Because the bulk of the inscriptions are lists of names, their commentary primarily consists of discussion of those names: possible restorations, comparisons, and potential social and political significance. The major conclusions that can be drawn from the texts are highlighted in summaries that follow. This book treads some of the same ground as S. Cole in Theoi Megaloi: The Cult of the Great Gods at Samothrace (Brill, 1984), and Dimitrova supplies updates to the maps of the provenance of theoroi and initiates and emphasizes when new information supports or emends Cole's conclusions.

The first part is devoted to the twenty eight texts pertaining to Samothracian theoroi and is the foundation for the list of their names, published for the first time in the index of this monograph. The texts are introduced by an admirably clear discussion of the problematic etymology and usage of the word theoros. The catalogue is divided first based on block type and then ordered thematically by textual features such as the presence of an opening formula. Seventeen of the inscribed stones are wall blocks, and ample space is allotted to discussing what building these blocks originally formed. This attention to both the text and the object onto which the text was inscribed is present throughout the volume.

Nearly 150 inscriptions make up the second, larger part on initiates. The new texts included here have added about 100 names to Cole's 1984 list, and autopsy of the stones has led to the emendation of a large percentage of the known names. A clear introduction explains the function and meaning of mysteries and the two categories of initiation, both generally and for Samothrace. The texts in which the ethnics of initiates are preserved are presented first, arranged alphabetically by location, with clear cross-referencing for lists with multiple ethnics. This catalogue opens with an Attic verse inscription (no. 29), included among the Samothracian documents because of its importance, and is the only inscription accompanied by an English translation. It contributes to an understanding of initiate experience—particularly their anticipation of a happy afterlife—rather than simply identity. The final group of inscriptions (Chapter 8: "Other Inscriptions Concerning Initiates") is made up of four texts from Samothrace which are relevant to initiates but are not lists of names. The highlight here is new editions of the two prohibition markers with updated but brief discussion of their archaeological context.

Each catalogue entry is the fruit of a lot of labor; thanks to Dimitrova, many epigraphists will be...