BMCR 2009.07.27: Ustinova on Guldager Bilde, Meetings of Cultures in the Black Sea Region: Between Conflict and Coexistence. Black Sea Studies 8

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Pia Guldager Bilde, Jane Hjarl Petersen (ed.), Meetings of Cultures in
the Black Sea Region: Between Conflict and Coexistence. Black Sea
Studies 8.  Aarhus:  Aarhus Universitetsforlag, 2008.  Pp. 422.  ISBN
9788779344198.  $63.95.

Reviewed by Yulia Ustinova, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
([email protected])
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Full text (http://www.pontos.dk/publications/books)

[Authors and titles are listed at the end of the review.]

The volume edited by Pia Guldager Bilde and Jane Hjarl Petersen
includes mostly papers presented at the seventh international
conference on meetings of cultures in the Black Sea region, organized
by the Danish National Research Foundation's Centre for Black Sea
Studies. The articles in the collection treat a wide range of subjects,
from archaeology of Greek and indigenous settlements through history
and its periodization to religious and cultural ideas. In terms of
geography, the majority of papers deals with the Black Sea area, but
some reach as far away from Pontus Euxeinos as Magna Graecia. The
collection is divided into sections, each consisting of rather loosely
connected papers united under the titles 'Setting the Scene', 'Spaces
of Identity,' 'Claiming the Land', 'The Dynamics of Cultural Exchange,'
and 'Mind the Gap.'

The aims of the editors are large-scale: in the spirit of post-modern
rhetoric, they suggest in the Preface to study 'colonial encounters'
rather than colonization and to avoid discrimination between the 'the
colonized' and 'the colonizer' (p. 10). However, as the titles of
several papers in the volume show, the editors failed to impose their
ambition on many authors who retained traditional terminology. The lack
of unity in this volume reaches however beyond semantic nuances, and
even beyond expectable differences in approaches between scholars. Some
papers present full-scale research with considerable bearing on the
study of  Greek colonization (the present reviewer prefers to stick to
the old-fashion word), while many articles are publications of single
sites or even separate features, which properly belong to
archaeological reports rather than to a volume aspiring to propagate a
conceptual change.  As a result, the reader receives an assortment of
papers of divergent quality which share one feature only: all of them
deal with Greeks and barbarians.

The first section, 'Setting the Scene', opens with a synopsis of the
historical development of the Cimmerian Bosporus by J. A. Vinogradov,
who argues convincingly that major changes in the area were determined
by dynamic relations between the urban centers and various indigenous
peoples controlling the adjacent territories, and suggests a division
of the first six centuries of the Bosporan history into seven stages.

P. Guldager Bilde raises an interesting point emphasizing the
correspondence between some religious phenomena, in particular mystery
cults, in the Black Sea area and in Magna Graecia, which she explains
by 'diasporic experience' of the Greeks overseas. The comparison itself
is very stimulating and could launch a promising investigation.
However, the thesis is blurred by the use of misleading conceptions,
old ones, such as 'Dionysos religion' (p. 30) or 'Dionysianism' (pp.
32, 40) which have been discarded in the study of Greek religion a long
time ago, and new ones, such as 'diasporic experience' of the Greek
colonists. With due respect to the trauma of any continuous break with
the community of origin, diaspora--as opposed to other instances of
emigration--follows a catastrophe in the native country and diasporic
experience is fashioned by this catastrophe first and foremost, which
is not the case of the Greek colonization. In the colonial milieu, an
advantage of the Dionysiac mysteries over many other mystery cults lay
in the absence of the former's attachment to a specific locality.
Another reason for the popularity of Orphic and Bacchic practices and
ideas could be interaction with local traditions--a cause suggested by
Guldager Bilde herself. There could be other factors that are worth an
in-depth study, but 'diasporic experience' does not seem to be one of
them.

V. Mordvintseva proposes to re-examine current views on the propagation
of the Sarmatians into the Black Sea area from the east, using as an
indicative group of artifacts phalerae, presumably elements of horse
harness, which in her opinion arrived in the Northern Pontic region
from the West. The article is a combination of a short survey of
phalerae with a detailed historiography of the issue, which hardly
leads to the proposed conclusions. A much wider study of archaeological
evidence and written testimonies is needed to substantiate the global
change of approach suggested by the author.

The second section is entitled 'Spaces of Identity.' In his impressive
paper, P. Attema evaluates the situation in the Sibaritide
diachronically, making use of landscape archaeology and combining data
from the urban settlement and its environment, in order to assess the
nature of relations between the indigenous peoples and the Greeks. The
results of this research clarify the dynamics of the Greek colonization
in the Sibaritide, and contribute to the development of a nuanced
approach to colonial situations elsewhere, showing that they may have
differed not only from area to area, and also from period to period
even in the same place. Modes of domination, exchange, conflict or
co-habitation are also discussed by A. Baralis, who examines the chora
of the Greek cities in the Aegean Thrace. The article demonstrates that
the formation of city territory was a complex multi-dimensional
process.

Although placed by the editors in a different section, the article of
J. Munk Hojte joins the papers by Attema and Baralis in its keen
sensitivity for the importance of local peculiarities and the fluidity
of Greek-barbarian relationships. The author analyses factors
determining the choice of sites for colonies, taking as his point of
reference failed attempts at founding colonies. Due to this original
perspective he arrives at thought-provoking insights concerning
settlement patterns and modalities of intercultural relationships in
the Black Sea area.

Articles by A. V. Karjaka, A. V. Gavrilov, and T. N. Smekalova in the
section 'Claiming the Land', as well as contributions by M. Vickers and
A. Kakhidze, and E. Kakhidze, to be found in other sections, are
publications of excavations of sites and monuments or archaeological
surveys of limited areas. Important as they are as accounts of precious
archaeological evidence, they lack analytical and comparative aspects
present in other contributions.

Four papers in the section 'The Dynamics of Cultural Exchange,' employ
archaeological monuments or artifacts as evidence of cultural
interaction, social stratification or ethnic complexity. J. H. Petersen
emphasizes the elite context in which the kurgan burials at Nymphaion
belonged. N. A. Gavriljuk suggests using black-glazed vessels
discovered in Scythian burials as social indicators. L. Summerer
demonstrates that Greek type decorated clay plaques of the Halys Basin
attest to the variety of tastes and demands of the local elite. N. G.
Novicenkova uses the excavations of a sanctuary in the Crimea Mountains
to attain a better understanding of the relationships between the local
tribes and the Greeks and Romans.

Papers in the section 'Mind the Gap' examine personal aspects of
cultural interaction in the Black Sea area, focusing on the
individual's attitudes to the other. It is noteworthy that all three
authors refer, alongside other testimonies, to the story of Scyles in
Herodotus and the famous 'Orphic' bone plaques from Olbia. R. Osborne
demonstrates that Classical Olbia does not yield significant evidence
of divergence between religious beliefs and customs of the local Greeks
as compared to other Ionians, and that when the Olbians adopted new
political or cultural practices, they borrowed from other Greek cities.
Osborne subtly detects that it was not the origin or essence of their
practices that made Olbians slightly different from other Greeks, but
the selection of ideas and procedures and perhaps the way to articulate
them in material form.

Among the authors of the volume, D. Braund is the only one to affirm
that his starting point comes from the post-colonial discourse.
However, in emphasizing the perspective of the indigenous population
alongside that of the Greeks, Braund is far from being alone. He shows
that figures like Anacharsis or Zalmoxis were used by Greek authors to
draw attention to Greek idiosyncrasies: familiar looked strange when
the beholder's eye was barbarian. Furthermore, the Greeks were not all
concentrated in urban centers, they penetrated the Scythian land, and
their interaction with the Scythians took place in different locations
and took different forms, extending beyond economic exchange, and
Braund highlights the importance of constructive engagement of the
Greeks with their neighbors.

The viewpoint of G. Hinge is different; his article aims to trace
'eschatological ideology' in Herodotus' Book 4, which supposedly served
to contrast Scythian nomadism and Greek civilization. That Herodotus'
entire work was written to show that 'East is East, and West is West,
and never the twain shall meet', is well established; the Scythians in
this context are just one of the many non-Greek peoples. However, it is
not entirely clear how the five episodes of the 'eschatological string'
suggested by Hinge function in this context. For example, figures like
Abaris and Zalmoxis can be viewed as bridging the 'gap' between the
Greeks and barbarians rather than symbolizing its insuperability,
whereas Darius' crossing of the Danube can hardly be regarded as an
unsuccessful initiation. Notwithstanding the ingenious presentation of
the 'eschatological string' and a number of remarkable insights,
Hinge's main thesis still lacks coherence.

The volume is nicely produced and reader-friendly. It is provided with
four indices: of geographical names, gods and mythological figures, of
ancient proper names, and of ancient authors. Nevertheless, names in
the volume seem to be a problem. First of all, the title of the book
appears as 'Meetings of cultures: between conflict and coexistence' on
the cover, and as 'Meetings of cultures in the Black Sea region:
between conflict and coexistence' on the title-page, the words 'in the
Black Sea region' printed exactly in the same font as the beginning of
the title. Furthermore, in the Preface the editors refer to an article
by A. Baralis and A. Riapov (p. 10). Riapov's name is dropped in the
contents and in the title on pages 101-130, where A. Baralis appears as
the only author. The reader is left to guess 'what's in the name', of
the volume and of the article. The editors also made some strange
spelling choices. Throughout the volume, the name of M. Rostovtzeff is
spelt as Rostovcev (p. 18, 47, 56 and elsewhere). Although a legitimate
transcription of the Russian name, this spelling looks rather bizarre.
Rostovtzeff himself signed his works in European languages in several
ways (Rostowtzeff, Rostovtseff, Rostowcew), and it would be natural to
make use of the form most common in his English works, which is
Rostovtzeff. A. Khazanov whose most important works were published
during several decades in English, chose how to spell his name in this
language. Why not to respect his decision, and to invent Chazanov (p.
237), an enigma to non-Russian-speaking readers?

To sum up: Many papers in the volume propose interesting insights into
various aspects of Greek colonization. The articles are of uneven
quality, treat a large variety of subjects and address readers with
divergent interests. As a whole, the collection is a noteworthy
contribution to the Black Sea studies.

Contents

Preface (9-12)

Jurij A. Vinogradov, Rhythms of Eurasia and the Main Historical Stages
of the Kimmerian Bosporos in Pre-Roman Times (13-27)

Pia Guldager Bilde, Some Reflections on Eschatological Currents,
Diasporic Experience, and Group Identity in the Northwestern Black Sea
Region (29-45)

Valentina Mordvinseva, Phalerae of Horse Harness in Votive Depositions
of the 2nd-1st century BC in the North Pontic Region and the Sarmatian
Paradigm (47-65)

Peter Attema, Conflict or Coexistence? Remarks on Indigenous Settlement
and Greek Colonization in the Foothills and Hinterland of the
Sibaritide (Northern Calabria, Italy) (67-99)

Alexandre Baralis, The Chora Formation of the Greek Cities of Aegean
Thrace. Towards a Chronological Approach to the Colonization Process
(101-130)

Michael Vickers and Amiran Kakhidze, A Kolchian and Greek Settlement:
Excavations at Picvnari 1967 to 2005 (131-148)

Jakob Munk Hojte, The Cities that Never Were. Failed Attempts at
Colonization in the Black Sea (149-162)

Alexander V. Karjaka, The Defense Wall in the Northern Part of the
Lower City of Olbia Pontike (163-180)

Alexander V. Karjaka, The Demarcation System of the Agricultural
Environment of Olbia Pontike (181-192)

Alexander V. Gavrilov, The First Results of the Archaeological Surveys
near Cape Cauda and Lake Kacik on the Kerch Peninsula (193-206)

Tatiana N. Smekalova, Archaeological Sites of the Southwestern Part of
Bosporos and their Connection to the Landscape (207-213)

Jane Hjarl Petersen, Kurgan Burials from Nymphaion--A New Approach
(215-235)

Nadezda A. Gavriljuk, Social and Economic Stratification of the
Scythians from the Steppe Region Based on Black-glazed Pottery from
Burials (237-261)

Latife Summerer, Indigenous Responses to Encounters with the Greeks in
Northern Anatolia: The Reception of Architectural Terracottas in the
Iron Age Settlements of the Halys Basin (263-286)

Natalia G. Novicenkova, Mountainous Crimea: A Frontier Zone of Ancient
Civilization (287-301)

Emzar Kakhidze, Apsaros: A Roman Fort in Southwestern Georgia (303-332)

Robin Osborne, Reciprocal Strategies: Imperialism, Barbarism and Trade
in Archaic and Classical Olbia (333-346)

David Braund, Scythian Laughter: Conversations in the Northern Black
Sea Region in the 5th Century BC (347-367)

George Hinge, Dionysos and Herakles in Scythia - The Eschatological
String of Herodotos' Book 4 (369-397)

Indices (399-420)

Contributors (421-422)