Topic: 2. Sacrifice and religion: Comparisons, Antiquarians, Anthropology (16th-18th Century)

Religious sacrifices across various cultures and contexts sparked widespread interest in Early Modern Europe. As Christianity expanded into regions inhabited by "infidels" and "pagans", Europeans encountered a diverse array of sacrificial customs, ranging from the Sati rituals in India to the Aztec sacrifices in the Americas. This cross-cultural exposure captivated a wide audience, including theologians, philosophers, political thinkers, antiquarians, orientalists, missionaries, poets, artists, and even the general public. These encounters broadened the European understanding of sacrifice and led to a critical reassessment of classical and biblical sacrificial rites. This section includes:

  • Sources: A selection of early modern printed materials, which include descriptions of the Americas, Asia, and Africa, alongside antiquarian and philological studies on religious sacrifice in classical antiquity and beyond. It also presents early modern works of ethnological observations and the first attempts to compare different sacrificial practices in various traditions and contexts, laying the groundwork for disciplines like the history of religions and anthropology.
  • Iconographic Representations: A rich collection of images from the 16th to 18th centuries, illustrating a range of sacrificial rituals and practices as seen in different cultural and geographical contexts.
  • Related Bibliography: An extensive bibliography spanning scholarly works from the 19th to 21st centuries, providing contemporary analyses and interpretations of these early studies and observations.

Displaying results from 361 to 380 of 1985


Belli Bose, Melia

Devi Kund Sagar: The Iconography of Satī and Its Absence in Bikaner’s Chatrīs

in: Royal Umbrellas of Stone: Memory, Politics, and Public Identity in Rajput Funerary Art, pp. 213–247

Leiden: Brill, 2015.

Ben-Sasson, M.; Franklin, A. E. - Margariti, R. E. - Rustow, M. - Simonsohn, U. (Eds.)

Sanctifying the Name of God (Qiddush ha-Shem) in Christian and Islamic Countries during the Middle Ages

in: Jews, Christians and Muslims in Medieval and Early Modern Times. A Festschrift in Honor of Mark R. Cohen, pp. 169–194

Leiden: Brill, 2014.

Benkheira, H. ; Benkheira, H. - Mayeur-Jaouen, C. - Sublet, J. (Eds.)

Donner la mort

in: L’animal en islam, pp. 109-138

Paris: Les Indes Savantes, 2005.

Benkheira, Mohammed Hocine; Aasgaard, R; Horn, C. B.; Cojocaru, O. M. (Ed.)

“Pour out the blood and remove the evil from him” The creation of a ritual of birth (‘aqīqa) in Islam in the eighth century 1

in: Childhood in History Perceptions of Children in the Ancient and Medieval Worlds, pp.

London: Routledge, 2018.

Benthall, J.; Baumgartner, A. I. (Ed.)

Firstfruits in the Quran

in: Sacrifice in Religious Experience, pp. 257-270

Leiden: Brill, 2002.

Keywords: IslamQur'an

Benthall, J. - Brisebarre, A-M. - Delaney, C.

Two takes on the Abraham story

in: Anthropology Today, v. 15 (1999), issue 1: pp.1-2.

Bentor, Y.

‘Internalized Fire Rituals in India and Tibet

in: ournal of the American Oriental Society, v. 120 (2000), issue 4: pp.594-613.

Benveniste, É.

Le sacrifice

in: Le vocabulaire des institutions indo-européennes, pp. 223-231

Paris: Les Éditions de Minuit, 1969.

Benveniste, É.

Le sacrifice

in: Le vocabulaire des institutions indo-européennes, pp. 223-231

Paris: Les Éditions de Minuit , 1969.


Displaying results from 361 to 380 of 1985