page_title: Minoan religion
section_title: Cultic practice
hierarchical_section_title: Minoan religion / Cultic practice
context_page_description: Minoan religion was the religion of the Bronze Age Minoan civilization of Crete. Modern scholars have reconstructed it almost totally on the basis of archaeological remains rather than texts. Minoan religion is considered to have been closely related to Near Eastern prehistoric religions, and its central deity is generally agreed to have been a goddess. Prominent Minoan sacred symbols include the bull and its horns of consecration, the labrys, the serpent, and to some extent, the Ankh.
context_section_description: Based on archaeological evidence of such as paintings, statuettes, and seal rings, it is clear that the dominant figure in Minoan religion was a goddess, with whom a younger male figure, perhaps a consort or son, is often associated, usually in contexts suggesting that the male figure is a worshiper. The Goddess was also often associated with animals, especially the snake, but also with bull, lion, and dove. She seems to have been served by priestesses, but there is no evidence that Minoan religious practice was centered around formal public temples. Some scholars see in the Minoan Goddess a female divine solar figure.
  Károly Kerényi believed that the most important goddess was Ariadne, daughter of King Minos and mistress of the labyrinth who is identified in Linear B (Mycenean Greek) tablets in Knossos.
  Retrieval of metal and clay votive figures, double axes, miniature vessels, models of artifacts, animals, and human figures has identified sites of cult, such as numerous small shrines in Minoan Crete, and mountain peaks and very numerous sacred caves over 300 have been explored were the centers for some cult, but temples, as the Greeks developed them, were unknown. Within the palace complex, no central rooms devoted to a cult have been recognized other than the center court, where youths of both sexes would practice the bull-leaping ritual. There are no Minoan frescoes that depict any deities.
  One of the cultic figures of ancient Crete and later of the Mycenaeans is known as the Minoan Genius. This was a fantastic creature with similarities both to the lion and the hippopotamus, which implies a connection with ancient Egypt. This deity played a role as a protector of children, and also in various fertility rituals.
caption: The bull leaper from Knossos (Heraklion Archaeological Museum)
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