Professor, DSc., PhD Vanya Lozanova-Stantcheva Interested in: 1). History and Theory of Ancient Culture 2). Ancient mythology and religion 3). History and theory of theatre
Lozanova-Stancheva, V. Thragic Orpheus. Orpheus On the Stage of the Old Attic Theater. – Bulletin ‘Heritage BG’ – Research Announcements, бр. 2, 14-16, 2022
The article offers an analysis of the information about the figure of Orpheus on the stage of the... more The article offers an analysis of the information about the figure of Orpheus on the stage of the Old Attic theater in the 5 th century BC. They are systematized in several groups around the mythological motifs characterizing the Thracian musician: The magical power of Orpheus' word-song; Orpheus enchanting wild animals, which is closely associated with the myth of the Argonauts; the myth of the katabasis of Orpheus. In ancient times, magic was almost always negatively associated with the religious practices of someone else, a foreigner, the Other. It is a term that distinguishes these practices from the norm and a means of defining the Otherness embodied in the figure of Orpheus. Along this line, the reserved and even negative attitude towards Orphism and the related religious movement in classical Athens developed. These characteristics transform the figure of the Thracian into inconsistent, conflicting with the canons of good tragedy, defined by Aristotle in his Poetics, and explain why it appears on the stage of the Old Attic theater unsystematically and in associative terms.
The focus of this paper is on some aspects of the early pre-emporial (Thracian) stages of Byzanti... more The focus of this paper is on some aspects of the early pre-emporial (Thracian) stages of Byzantion. The mythological evidence on the city’s emergence, combined with the numismatic material, is systematised and analysed with a view to localising the initial Thracian settlements in the region of the Golden Horn: their synoecism gradually gave birth to the phenomenal city that attracted the attention of the ancient authors only after the emergence of the Greek apoikia. Its unique geographic and strategic location between the Orient and the Occident was not always desired and appreciated, especially during the first half of the first millennium BC, at the time of a dynamic ethnic and cultural situation in Southeastern Europe, and strong military and political activity of the Thracian tribes. The legendary figures, dramatised in the mythological events of the emergence and founding of the city, are extremely deeply rooted in the toponymy of its region, which betrays their profound pre-emporial antiquity. On the other hand, the combined evidence of the ancient authors outlines the roots and the genesis of the local solar cult that is at the centre of the religious traditions of Byzantion. A new interpretation is proposed for some images on the city’s coins in the context of the local mythological traditions. Keywords: Byzantion, pre-emporial (Thracian) stages, Greek apoikia, Thracian tribes, Byzas, local mythological traditions.
Thracia, XVI. In honorem X Congressus studiorum Thracicorum, Graecia 2005, Serdicae, 2005, 179-192, 2005
Am 11. März 1880 wurde bei Ausgrabungen in der Umgebung einer Grabstätte auf Rhodos neben verschi... more Am 11. März 1880 wurde bei Ausgrabungen in der Umgebung einer Grabstätte auf Rhodos neben verschiedenen anderen Gegenständen und Gefäßen auch eine attisch rotfigurige Hydria gefunden, die heute im Britischen Museum (NE 818) aufbewahrt wird. Sie wurde 1890 von S. Smith (1890, 343-351) veröffentlicht. Die Verfasserin bestätigt die attische Herkunft der Hydria und datiert sie an den Anfang des 4. Jhs. v. Chr. Die grobe, sichtbar nachlässige Linienführung bzw. die ausgesprochen groteske Manier der Malerei deutet darauf hin, dass das Bild der Vase eine Theaterszene darstellt, deren Identifizierung unter den populären attischen Dramen der Zeit zu suchen ist. Die Darstellung besteht aus drei Figuren. Im Zentrum, den Zuschauer anstarrend, steht frontal ein bärtiger Mann in einem kurzen, an der Taille gegürteten Chiton. Über dem Chiton trägt er ein langes Kleid, eine Zeira, das mit Rapporten von pflanzlichen Motiven-Efeu-und Rebenblättern-reich dekoriert ist. Auf seinen Kopf hat er einen sel...
Lozanova-Stancheva, V. Thragic Orpheus. Orpheus On the Stage of the Old Attic Theater. – Bulletin ‘Heritage BG’ – Research Announcements, бр. 2, 14-16, 2022
The article offers an analysis of the information about the figure of Orpheus on the stage of the... more The article offers an analysis of the information about the figure of Orpheus on the stage of the Old Attic theater in the 5 th century BC. They are systematized in several groups around the mythological motifs characterizing the Thracian musician: The magical power of Orpheus' word-song; Orpheus enchanting wild animals, which is closely associated with the myth of the Argonauts; the myth of the katabasis of Orpheus. In ancient times, magic was almost always negatively associated with the religious practices of someone else, a foreigner, the Other. It is a term that distinguishes these practices from the norm and a means of defining the Otherness embodied in the figure of Orpheus. Along this line, the reserved and even negative attitude towards Orphism and the related religious movement in classical Athens developed. These characteristics transform the figure of the Thracian into inconsistent, conflicting with the canons of good tragedy, defined by Aristotle in his Poetics, and explain why it appears on the stage of the Old Attic theater unsystematically and in associative terms.
The focus of this paper is on some aspects of the early pre-emporial (Thracian) stages of Byzanti... more The focus of this paper is on some aspects of the early pre-emporial (Thracian) stages of Byzantion. The mythological evidence on the city’s emergence, combined with the numismatic material, is systematised and analysed with a view to localising the initial Thracian settlements in the region of the Golden Horn: their synoecism gradually gave birth to the phenomenal city that attracted the attention of the ancient authors only after the emergence of the Greek apoikia. Its unique geographic and strategic location between the Orient and the Occident was not always desired and appreciated, especially during the first half of the first millennium BC, at the time of a dynamic ethnic and cultural situation in Southeastern Europe, and strong military and political activity of the Thracian tribes. The legendary figures, dramatised in the mythological events of the emergence and founding of the city, are extremely deeply rooted in the toponymy of its region, which betrays their profound pre-emporial antiquity. On the other hand, the combined evidence of the ancient authors outlines the roots and the genesis of the local solar cult that is at the centre of the religious traditions of Byzantion. A new interpretation is proposed for some images on the city’s coins in the context of the local mythological traditions. Keywords: Byzantion, pre-emporial (Thracian) stages, Greek apoikia, Thracian tribes, Byzas, local mythological traditions.
Thracia, XVI. In honorem X Congressus studiorum Thracicorum, Graecia 2005, Serdicae, 2005, 179-192, 2005
Am 11. März 1880 wurde bei Ausgrabungen in der Umgebung einer Grabstätte auf Rhodos neben verschi... more Am 11. März 1880 wurde bei Ausgrabungen in der Umgebung einer Grabstätte auf Rhodos neben verschiedenen anderen Gegenständen und Gefäßen auch eine attisch rotfigurige Hydria gefunden, die heute im Britischen Museum (NE 818) aufbewahrt wird. Sie wurde 1890 von S. Smith (1890, 343-351) veröffentlicht. Die Verfasserin bestätigt die attische Herkunft der Hydria und datiert sie an den Anfang des 4. Jhs. v. Chr. Die grobe, sichtbar nachlässige Linienführung bzw. die ausgesprochen groteske Manier der Malerei deutet darauf hin, dass das Bild der Vase eine Theaterszene darstellt, deren Identifizierung unter den populären attischen Dramen der Zeit zu suchen ist. Die Darstellung besteht aus drei Figuren. Im Zentrum, den Zuschauer anstarrend, steht frontal ein bärtiger Mann in einem kurzen, an der Taille gegürteten Chiton. Über dem Chiton trägt er ein langes Kleid, eine Zeira, das mit Rapporten von pflanzlichen Motiven-Efeu-und Rebenblättern-reich dekoriert ist. Auf seinen Kopf hat er einen sel...
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Papers by Vanya B . Lozanova-Stancheva