Prof. Dr. Natascha Sojc

The Akragas Dialogue

DAAD international workshop for MA and PhD students
19-22 April 2016, Augsburg University

Inspired by Sicily’s ancient landscape of cultural encounter, the aim of the Akragas Dialogue workshop is to create synergy through a diversity of research approaches that focus on identity formation in the ancient Mediterranean city. The event will unite specialists who conduct investigations on sanctuaries in Akragas, Gela, Selinus and Monte Iato. The material dimension of cult practice in sanctuaries is central to the workshop as it can be viewed as a crystallization point of ancient societies. The research focus of the workshop is directed towards past ritual activities, with specific attention given to three key areas of enquiry.

Firstly, the architectural setting of sanctuaries will be examined beyond temple buildings to appraise the wider context of their structural and spatial complexity. Secondly, the material culture pertaining to votive deposition and religious feasting will be analyzed in terms of performative characteristics and through the lens of anthropological approaches. Thirdly, the significance of gender in cultic practice will be investigated in light of the fresh data retrieved by different research projects.

The international workshop is specifically directed towards students, graduate students and early career researchers. It will be introduced by a public lecture by Prof. E. Kistler (University of Innsbruck) in the evening of 19.4.2016, and end with the presentation of participants’ projects on 22.4.2016.

At the beginning of 2020 the conference proceedings were published in an edited volume:The Akragas Dialogue. New investigations on sanctuaries in Sicily.