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Paper short abstract:

This presentation will explore the materiality of the threshold system in the ancient Mediterranean, focusing in particular on the case of the door as a material agent in Greek culture, to highlight its relations with the complex scope of magic and its mythical and technological representations.

Paper long abstract:

The door constitutes an anthropological space of clash between different conflicting agencies: on the one hand, the defensive need to 'close' in order to keep the internal social space intact from any hostile entities; on the other, the need to admit and welcome otherness in a socially controlled form, defusing its possible harmful influences. The technological (and also magical) enhancement of the entrance system thus reflects the religious and cultural instances inherent in this ambiguous artefact. The door is an attractive device whose function is to 'stop' the stranger and which must produce a strong emotional impact on those who approach it. After the comparative study by Arnold van Gennep and the in-depth analysis by Otto Weinreich, the historical-religious reflection on the ancient threshold still sees its rightful place in the debate between religion, magic and technology as unresolved.

Drawing on various contributions by Alfred Gell on the relationship between technology and magic (in particular the notion of 'technology of enchantment'), I will first provide a theoretical framework for exploring some of the most important ancient testimonies. This will also be made possible by a critical resumption of Bruno Latour's reflections on the door as a crucible for different and distributed agencies.

In this way, I will be able to deconstruct the mythical and ideal models of the gate, starting with the 'automatic' gates of Olympus, whose hinges 'moo' spontaneously when the gods want to cross them, and then focusing on the marvellous thresholds of the palace of Alcinous, which 'enchant' Odysseus when he tries to cross them incognito, shrouded in an impenetrable mist. Finally, I will discuss the further agency of the threshold in the PGM collection, where it becomes the fulcrum of magical attention of various practitioners, and where all its technical elements contribute to specific magical purposes.