The Participation of Children in Mycenaean Cult

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to examine the participation of children in the performance of Mycenaean cult. The involvement of children in the performance of religious rites during the Mycenaean period is indicated exclusively by iconographic representations. The depiction of children in scenes of cultic character may be implying the active role of children as acolytes. Iconographic evidence seems to suggest a specific connection between young girls and a young goddess, similar to the association inferred by Theran frescoes. The latter supports further the notion that children might have participated in the performance of religious acts in Mycenaean times and it may also imply that girls particularly may have spent several years of their life in the service of a goddess.