On the History of Religious Cults of Pisidia: rock votive reliefs

Abstract

This article examines a group of religious images, namely votive reliefs carved in rocks, discovered during field research in Pisidia, through the prism of the collective memory of religious cults. Our goal is, on the one hand, to better understand their significance in the local cult, and on the other hand, to consider some ways of perceiving and studying such reliefs over time. The object of consideration in this article will be the rock votive reliefs of Pisidia, which will clarify some aspects of the evolution of religious cults of Pisidia in connection with its history, starting from Hellenistic and ending with Roman times. Religious cults are a topic of great importance for researchers who study ancient religion and history, as well as engage in archaeological excavations. Each of the components of this problem acts as a useful basis for conducting research, but in the process of their joint consideration, they become a powerful tool for understanding the human relationship with the divine. Based on the study of rock votive reliefs, it can be concluded that the functions possessed by the cult and ritual practices of Roman Pisidia were directly related to the audience. These functions inevitably changed over time and could be interpreted differently by different people or even by the same people in different cases.