BMCR 2009.03.59, Lucia Amalia Scatozza Hoericht, Pithecusa: materiali

Lucia Amalia Scatozza Hoericht, Pithecusa: materiali votivi da Monte
Vico e dall'area di Santa Restituta. Corpus delle stipi votive in
Italia. XX. Regio I; 3.  Roma:  Giorgio Bretschneider, 2007.  Pp. 116;
xxviii p. of plates.  ISBN 9788876892257.  EUR 95.00 (pb).

Reviewed by Ingrid Edlund-Berry, The University of Texas at Austin
([email protected])
Word count:  1070 words
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To read a print-formatted version of this review, see
http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/bmcr/2009/2009-03-59.html
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With each new volume in the invaluable series Corpus delle stipi votive
in Italia we recognize the limitations of our overall knowledge of
votives in Italy. But, at the same time, each volume provides the
important additional pieces in the puzzle which gradually allow
students and scholars to evaluate the role of votive offerings as a
main, and sometimes the only, evidence for many aspects of ancient
religion.

The material presented by L.A. Scatozza Hoericht (henceforth S.H.)
comes from the peninsula of Monte Vico and from the area of the
Basilica di Santa Restituta at Lacco Ameno on the island of Ischia
(Pithecusa). Because of the complicated and long-term excavations at
Ischia, the terracottas form only one part of the vast body of votive
material from the island and we must recognize that we are not dealing
with pristine 'votive deposits' in the traditional sense.

The format of the catalogue of objects follows that of the corpus in
general. The first category (A) consists of female busts, one from
Monte Vico, Scarico Gosetti, and the other from S. Restituta, for which
parallels come from Sicily (Morgantina) but also from S. Aniello a
Caponapoli. The second category (B) contains female heads, of which
there is one example from S. Restituta. Again, parallels come from
Sicily, but also from mainland Greece (Corinth, Delphi), and from a
sanctuary at Ariccia, south of Rome.

Category C, masks, includes a fragment of a theatrical mask of a type
known from both Magna Graecia and Sicily. Category D, statues, includes
fragments of three types, a standing Aphrodite, a peplophoros, and a
nude male, and category E lists fragments of uncertain attribution.

Category F contains the largest group of votive terracottas presented
in this volume. These are seated and standing females, some of the
Tanagra type, a fragmentary doll, standing Eros figures, heads,
protomes or masks, animals (standing bull), and fruits (for example,
pomegranates).

Votive pottery (category G) is sparse (a miniature thymiaterion and two
small plates with reclining figures modeled by hand). Small altars
(category H) are represented by one well-preserved example with the
bust of Athena modeled on the front, and one small fragment. Category I
(reliefs) includes a fragmentary plaque of a horse and rider of a type
known from Syracuse representing one of the Dioscuri twins.

Category L (moulds/matrices) includes four fragments of a female head,
two masks, and a Tanagra statuette. The last category (M, varia)
contains an Archaic female head with a polos, interpreted as a patrix
or positive original from which a matrix or negative mould was made, a
conical stamp with the head of Athena, and a small female head.

As seen in the brief listing above, the votive material from Monte Vico
and S. Restituta at Pithecusa is small in quantity and the objects are
often fragmentary and, at first glance, rather insignificant. But,
thanks to the expertise of the author, the votives are placed in a
larger archaeological and historical context in separate chapters of
the book. S.H. first discusses the topography of Monte Vico and
emphasizes the long history of the promontory, as indicated by pottery
and other finds. According to the late Giorgio Buchner, the nestor of
Pithecusan archaeology, the peninsula contained a sacred area dating
from the 8th c. B.C., for which the best evidence is a votive model of
a house or temple from the Gosetti votive deposit, illustrated here as
pl. V. Fragments of architectural terracottas with palmette designs
further indicate the presence of a temple in the Archaic period. Blocks
of tufa and later architectural terracottas (disk akroterion, Gorgon
antefix) suggest continued cultic activity, perhaps centered around
Athena (antefix with head of Athena pl. XXVI).

The following chapter summarizes the cults of Pithecusa, ranging from
Apollo in his function as healer, Medicus, and in the company of
Nymphs, to Hera, Herakles, Athena, and Dionysos. The evidence for the
cults is varied, and S.H. emphasizes the connection between Pithecusa
and its origin, the island of Euboea in mainland Greece, as well as its
close contacts with Cumae and the cities of Campania.

S.H. further reviews the evidence for the cult(s) at Monte Vico, and
emphasizes the scarcity of clear-cut evidence. A female figure shown on
the votive temple/house model from the Gosetti deposit, mentioned
above, suggests that the cult centered around a female deity, as do the
votive terracottas listed in the catalogue. Objects such as loom
weights found at Monte Vico and in the area of the kilns at S.
Restituta could apply to the cult of Hera or Athena Ergane, and S.H.
favors the cult of Athena as a dominant one on Monte Vico but leaves
the question open, awaiting more evidence or new interpretations of the
material.

Evidence of terracotta production comes from the kilns and workshops
found at S. Restituta (pl. II), and S.H. postulates that this area was
used for production of votive objects as well as tiles and
architectural terracottas. As for the stylistic and cultural parallels
for the votive material discussed in this volume, S.H. highlights
connections with Cumae on the mainland for the Archaic period, Naples
and other sites in Campania for the 5th and 4th c. B.C., as well as
Sicily (Morgantina, Syracuse). The possible importance of Pithecusa as
a place of production and distribution is indicated in a clay analysis
(presented as an appendix), comparing antefixes from Pithecusa with
ones from Pompeii and suggesting Pithecusa as the place of production
for both sites.

S.H. concludes that in spite of the fragmentary material it is possible
to emphasize Pithecusa's historical and cultural connections with
Sicily and Campania and that the island was also part of the
Hellenistic globalization which ranged from Asia Minor to mainland
Greece to Italy. Finally, in the 1st c. B.C. Monte Vico ceased to exist
as a place of terracotta production and was submerged into the Roman
occupation of Pithecusa.

This volume forms an important addition to the corpus of votive
terracottas. It illustrates how a careful analysis can help place a few
fragmentary pieces into a much larger context. Through S.H.'s narrative
the reader is able follow the later history of the island of Pithecusa
(Ischia) through the end of the Republic, and the discussion of the
cults and iconography highlights Pithecusa's place within Italy and the
Mediterranean. Detailed footnotes refer the reader to previous
scholarship and numerous illustrations provide tools for comparisons
with votives from other sites.