They have between 900 and 350 BC and little is known about them. Who are they? And who offered them?
Em Cretaon a mountain slope, a mysterious collection of women’s statuettes was found, hidden in rocky cracks in the former village of Anavlochos, overlooking the rural area of Crete and the Mediterranean Sea.
Dated 900 e 350 a.C., Clay statuettes and signs were all broken when they were discovered and all portray female figures, but it is not known yet who put it there and why did it.
The place had been inhabited long before, between 1200 and 650 BC. Because offerings will have been made centuries after being abandoned is what investigators led by Florence Gaignerot-Driessenfrom the University of Cincinnati, they are now trying to find out.
Nicknamed by the team of “Anavlochos ladies”terracotta offerings are simple: their value is not material, but cultural.
To find out if the statuettes have been intentionally departed or simply damaged over time, the team is using scan methods and 3D printing. Digital models and resin replicas were created to compare with the originals that should determine whether molds were used in production – which would suggest mass manufacturing – or if each piece was handmade.
Among the findings are also signs with sphinxes – mythical creatures with a winged woman and lion body – and female figures in elaborate costumes, some with clothing like the hat chill or the cloak epiblema., which points to an influence of the Near East on primitive Greek culture, probably due to trade and migration during the 7th century AC, according to.
Plaque on site
One of the problems is that there are no texts that describe the rituals performed in Anavlochos, but Gaignerot-Driesen bets on the possibility that the statuettes are part of initiation or transition rituals for young women, linked to Mark such as puberty or motherhood.
The team returns to Crete at the end of 2025 to continue excavation and do practical places with clay of the site.
