The mouth-washing ritual (mīs pî) consisted of two days of intense ceremonial practices aimed at activating the cult statue. Once the mīs pî was completed, the statue was seen as a flesh-and-blood god possessing all five senses. To bring the wooden shell to life, it was crucial to establish that the effigy was of divine origin and not just a man-made object. Therefore, this paper discusses the misrecognition processes of human activity that allowed the statue to be considered a divine being. The study specifically examines the ritual use of the phrase «I did not make» (anāku ul ēpus) by artisans to deny their role in creating the effigy. The “negative confession” of the craftsmen is compared to other Mesopotamian rituals – for instance, the activation of the kettledrum (lilissu) – and discussed on the basis of speech act theory.

Anāku ul ēpuš, «Io non ho fatto». Il misconoscimento dell’operato umano nella manifattura della statua di culto / Ceravolo, Marinella. - In: HENOCH. - ISSN 2611-8076. - 2:45(2024), pp. 205-230.

Anāku ul ēpuš, «Io non ho fatto». Il misconoscimento dell’operato umano nella manifattura della statua di culto

Marinella Ceravolo
2024

Abstract

The mouth-washing ritual (mīs pî) consisted of two days of intense ceremonial practices aimed at activating the cult statue. Once the mīs pî was completed, the statue was seen as a flesh-and-blood god possessing all five senses. To bring the wooden shell to life, it was crucial to establish that the effigy was of divine origin and not just a man-made object. Therefore, this paper discusses the misrecognition processes of human activity that allowed the statue to be considered a divine being. The study specifically examines the ritual use of the phrase «I did not make» (anāku ul ēpus) by artisans to deny their role in creating the effigy. The “negative confession” of the craftsmen is compared to other Mesopotamian rituals – for instance, the activation of the kettledrum (lilissu) – and discussed on the basis of speech act theory.
2024
Mīs pî; Historiola; Speech Act Theory; Lilissu; Ritual misrecognition
01 Pubblicazione su rivista::01a Articolo in rivista
Anāku ul ēpuš, «Io non ho fatto». Il misconoscimento dell’operato umano nella manifattura della statua di culto / Ceravolo, Marinella. - In: HENOCH. - ISSN 2611-8076. - 2:45(2024), pp. 205-230.
File allegati a questo prodotto
File Dimensione Formato  
Ceravolo_Statua-di-culto_2023.pdf

solo gestori archivio

Note: Articolo completo
Tipologia: Versione editoriale (versione pubblicata con il layout dell'editore)
Licenza: Tutti i diritti riservati (All rights reserved)
Dimensione 796.52 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
796.52 kB Adobe PDF   Contatta l'autore

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11573/1714909
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? ND
  • Scopus ND
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? ND
social impact