The Many Lives of a Snake Goddess:
Diachronic, Multicultural, and Multisensory Perspectives

About the Project

'The Many Lives of a Snake Goddess: Diachronic, Multicultural, and Multisensory Perspectives' examines two of the most iconic, but also problematic, finds from Minoan (Bronze Age) Crete: the so-called Snake Goddess figurines (dating to c.1600 BCE), which were discovered by Sir Arthur Evans during his excavations of the 'Palace of Minos' at Knossos in 1903.

Ever since, they have beguiled not only archaeologists, but also artists, writers, psychoanalysts, feminists, fashion designers, and followers of modern Paganism, among many others -all of whom have re-imagined these icons for their own purposes. They have become poster girls for Minoan Crete (3rd-2nd millennia BCE), a culture that, since Evans, has often been hailed as the cradle of European civilization and an advanced proto-feminist society

Project Outputs

A dedicated website with a searchable database
A virtual exhibition
Access activities for people with sensory impairments
and, a range of publications

Through these varied activities and outputs this will provide a comprehensive and innovative overview of the figurines' 'many lives' to specialists and non-specialists alike. It combines the ancient and modern lives of these Minoan figurines through a systematic documentation and analysis of their rediscovery, reconstructions, diverse interpretations, and re-imaginations across multiple media (as outlined above) and at multiple levels (individual, local, national, and transnational).

The Team

Ellen Adams

Ellen Adams is Reader in Classical Archaeology at King’s College London. Originally trained in Minoan Archaeology, she now focuses on how access practices in museums may be applied to more traditional academic themes, such as audio description, touch tours and British Sign Language tours. She has edited the volume ‘Disability Studies and the Classical Body: The Forgotten Other’.

More can be found on www.mansil.uk

Nicoletta Momigliano

Nicoletta Momigliano is Professor of Aegean Studies at the University of Bristol. She is a specialist in Minoan Crete and its reception. She has conducted archaeological fieldwork at several sites on Crete, including Knossos, and also in Turkey. Her most recent book is In Search of the Labyrinth: the Cultural Legacy of Minoan Crete (Bloomsbury, 2020).

Christine Morris

Christine Morris is Andrew A David Professor of Greek Archaeology & History at Trinity College Dublin. She researches the Aegean Bronze Age, especially Minoan Crete where she has current archaeological projects, as well as Goddesses and their modern receptions. Her co-edited books include Ancient Goddesses (1998) and An Archaeology of Spiritualities (2012).