ABSTRACT

This chapter addresses what the implications were of dedicating an object that took the form of a material citation of the human body and what these might reveal about how people conceptualised, performed and, most importantly, constructed their knowledge of the gods. It focuses on anatomical votives, but other nonanthropomorphic votives might also serve as a part or an extension of the body. Ethnographic studies suggest that persons can be described as 'dividual' or, put another way, persons are believed to be composed of the relationships, objects or substances they share and exchange with others within a community. Such dividuality can take two forms: partibility and permeability. The chapter argues that in the context of votive cult the respective dividuality of both ancient gods and humans came to the fore, their relationship maintained via the mutual exchange of both material objects and intangible divine powers.