In recent years, the Western world has experienced a heightened interest in addressing troublesome heritage, especially with the rise of global anti-racism movements. In relation to the public...Show moreIn recent years, the Western world has experienced a heightened interest in addressing troublesome heritage, especially with the rise of global anti-racism movements. In relation to the public space it means that monuments that are connected to racial oppression often have become the target of iconoclastic acts of activists. An example of such a contested monument is the statue of James Marion Sims. Instead of attacking the actual statue, which is usually done in iconoclastic acts, artist Doreen Garner responded to the controversies surrounding Sims by harming a replica of his statue in her performance Purge (2017). This research paper investigates how the usage of this replica problematizes the existing definitions of iconoclasm and to what extent it can shed a different light on iconoclastic practices. To answer this question, anthropological theories on voodoo will be used, as the creation of a representation with the purpose of harming it, reminds of voodoo practices. By investigating the concept of iconoclasm in relation to voodoo, this research reveals the significant overlap between voodoo and iconoclasm, as both concepts function on the basis that a representation is targeted for its similarities with the referent.Show less
This thesis will investigate a connection between liminality and magical figurines in the Greek world. It will try to gain a better understanding of ancient society and how they dealt with a...Show moreThis thesis will investigate a connection between liminality and magical figurines in the Greek world. It will try to gain a better understanding of ancient society and how they dealt with a concept such as liminality. By taking Hecate as an example, it investigates liminality in connection to magical dolls. In this research, we will be Hecate as an example since she is widely regarded as the goddess of magic/ghosts or liminality. I will try to solve this problem by first gaining a general understanding of magic, magical objects and the practitioners of these rituals. I will then use specific examples of magical figurines and data of all these figurines in Greek contexts and put them into this magical framework. I found that liminality has a clear connection to where the dolls were buried or placed. Most dolls were placed in places of liminality, such as graves, bodies of water, crossroads, or door openings. Liminality was also involved in why these dolls were created and buried. In most rituals, liminal beings such as ghosts and demons or even Hecate herself were invoked to carry out the invocations accompanying the doll, whether this was erotic, harmful or helpful. Liminality impacted how people deposited magical dolls and the ritual connected to them. Looking for similar links to curse tablets, to which magic figurines are closely related in function, and other magic items could be helpful in understanding artefacts and the impact concepts as liminality had on society. Further research should look into the connection between concepts such as liminality and look at their connection to artefacts such as magical dolls or curse tablets.Show less
