Manipulative actions and meaning in Greco-Roman ritual analogy

This thesis examines the relationship between ritual action and intended effect during the Greco-Roman period. Three specific types of actions are analysed--binding, depositing, and burning--using both textual and archaeological material, such as curse tablets and figurines. The effects that ritual practitioners aimed to produce through these actions are identified, and geographic and temporal trends are examined from these findings. This overall analysis contributes to our understanding of how ancient ritual practitioners constructed the meaning of certain actions, and how this knowledge of ritual analogy was transmitted around the Mediterranean.