The Plane Trees of Diomedes: Staging the Islands of the Blessed in the Adriatic Sea

Abstract

Taking its starting point from the current theoretical debate about “religious aesthetics” (Religionsästhetik), this article offers a new interpretation of the landscaping of the Island of Diomedes. On the basis of a survey of the primary sources, it demonstrates that the descriptions of the Island of Diomedes have to be seen in the context of the mythological motif of the Islands of the Blessed. This in turn suggests an explanation for Theophrastus’ statement that in the Adriatic region of his day, the plane tree grew only around the shrine of Diomedes: given the typical associations of the plane tree, the planting of planes on the sanctuary island of Diomedes may have been intended to bring the appearance of the Island of Diomedes in line with contemporary stereotypes about the appearance of the Islands of the Blessed; thus, the plane trees of Diomedes constitute a historical case of direct relevance for the question of “religious aesthetics.” The article goes on to demonstrate that the plane trees of Diomedes constitute conclusive evidence against the identification of the Island of Diomedes with the island of Pelagosa (recently suggested on the basis of archaeological finds). Instead, the Island of Diomedes should be sought among the Isole Tremiti.