"The pen fell from my hand when I was in my eighty-sixth year"

“The pen fell from my hand when I was in my eighty-sixth year.” Revisiting the work of Martin P. Nilsson

Edited by Jenny Wallensten & Gunnel Ekroth

2017 marked the 50th anniversary of both the death of Martin P. Nilsson, the eminent Swedish scholar of ancient Greek religion, and the publication of the third edition of his monumental Geschichte der griechischen Religion. Nilsson’s scholarly output was huge, with a production of around 20 items annually, and he touched upon most aspects of the study of ancient Greek religion, be it in a book or an article, in a footnote or an in-depth argument. This volume constitutes a re-reading of Nilsson in the light of new ancient evidence, and modern methods and theoretical approaches.

Five leading researchers in this field of religion revisit major works of Nilsson’s oeuvre—Geschichte der griechischen Religion, vols 1 and 2 (Jon Mikalson and Eftychia Stavrianopoulou), Greek folk religion (Vinciane Pirenne-Delforge), Minoan-Mycenaean religion (Matthew Haysom) and Greek piety (Michael D. Konaris)—in order to explore whether his works today are mainly touched upon with just the usual obligatory references or if they still have an active impact on contemporary discourses. Hopefully, this undertaking will stimulate others to explore the vast landscape of Nilsson’s work in the future.


Contents

Initial remarks. By Jenny Wallensten & Gunnel Ekroth, pp. 9–14

Science, evergreen. An introduction. By Jesper Svenbro, pp. 15–22

Martin P. Nilsson, Geschichte der griechischen Religion vol. 1. By Jon Mikalson, pp. 23–37

Hellenistic Religion(s). Revisiting Martin P. Nilsson’s Geschichte der griechischen Religion vol. 2. Die hellenistische und römische Zeit. By Eftychia Stavrianopoulou, pp. 39–65

To be or not to be … “popular”. Martin P. Nilsson’s Greek folk religion, its context, and its modern echoes. By Vinciane Pirenne-Delforge, pp. 67–85

Nilsson in the Bronze Age. The place of prehistory in the history of Greek religion. Martin P. Nilsson’s Minoan-Mycenaean religion. By Matthew Haysom, pp. 87–120

A history of changing religious attitudes in Greek antiquity. Martin P. Nilsson’s Greek piety. By Michael D. Konaris, pp. 121–154

Index, pp. 155–158