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Brongersma E.

The Thera inscriptions: Ritual or slander?

Journal of Homosexuality, v20 (n1-2):31-40 (1990)

Abstract

Discusses inscriptions carved in a rock on the Greek island of Thera and dating from the 6th or 7th century BC that have homosexual contents. Originally considered a testimony to ritual sacred acts, they were described by H. I. Marrou (1956) and K. J. Dover (1978) as vulgar pornographic graffiti. Arguments against this view and in favor of the formal ritual interpretation are proposed.