I totally missed this news about the ‘School of Homer’ or ‘Homer’s Palace’ site on Ithaca last June/July: more inscriptions found that cement the idea of the site as a hero cult sanctuary, worshipping Odysseus - an Odysseion.
Archaeologists at the site of Aghios Athanasios – the “School of Homer” in northern Ithaki have unearthed new evidence of a hero cult dedica
My favourite things:
Pottery sherds/tiles with (partial) dedications to Odysseus on them: “…14 stamped tiles bear Greek and Latin inscriptions — including, crucially, pieces that mention Odysseus by name. One tile fragment carries the genitive form [ΟΔ]ΥCCEOC – meaning “of Odysseus,” perhaps to denote ownership or dedication. Another bears the partial inscription ΟΔΥC[CEI, likely a votive phrase meaning “to Odysseus.” “
This teensy head of a bronze statuette or bust identified as Odysseus that I hadn’t seen before (unclear when this was found) - it has similar features to images on Ithacan bronze coins from the 3rd and 4th centuries BCE. (See the article)
Reminder of hero and other cults in Ancient Greek worship: https://greekmythcomix.com/comic/classicstober-day-21-cult/
