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The term Bird goddess was coined by
The term Bird goddess was coined by Marija Gimbutas
Marija Gimbutas ( lt, Marija Gimbutienė, ; January 23, 1921 – February 2, 1994) was a Lithuanian archaeologist and anthropologist known for her research into the Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures of " Old Europe" and for her Kurgan hypothesis ...
with relation to figurines attributed to the neolithic Vinca culture. These figurines show female bodies combined with a bird's head. The interpretation as "goddess
A goddess is a female deity. In many known cultures, goddesses are often linked with literal or metaphorical pregnancy or imagined feminine roles associated with how women and girls are perceived or expected to behave. This includes themes ...
" is part of Gimbutas' program of feminist archaeology
Feminist archaeology employs a feminist perspective in interpreting past societies. It often focuses on gender, but also considers gender in tandem with other factors, such as sexuality, race, or class. Feminist archaeology has critiqued the ...
depicting the European neolithic as a "gynocentric" culture which would be ousted by the "patriarchal" Indo-European cultures with the onset of the Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
.
Griffen (2005) claims to have discovered a sign for the bird goddess in the Vinča signs
Vinča ( sr-cyr, Винча, ) is a suburban settlement of Belgrade, Serbia. It is part of the municipality of Grocka. Vinča-Belo Brdo, an important archaeological site that gives its name to the Neolithic Vinča culture, is located in the villa ...
.
Gimbutas also identified a " Lady of the Beasts" (the female analogon of Pashupati
Pashupati (Sanskrit ''Paśupati''; devanagari पशुपति ) is a Hindu deity and an incarnation of the Hindu god Shiva as "lord of the animals". Pashupati is mainly worshipped in Nepal and India. Pashupati is also the national deity of Ne ...
), a bear goddess
Bear worship (also known as the bear cult or arctolatry) is the religious practice of the worshipping of bears found in many North Eurasian ethnic religions such as among the Sami, Nivkh, Ainu, Basques, Germanic peoples, Slavs and Finns. T ...
and a snake goddess A snake goddess is a goddess associated with a snake theme.
Examples include:
* Meretseger ("She Who Loves Silence"), Egyptian snake goddess
* Minoan snake goddess figurines, a type of figurine in Minoan archaeology
*Renenutet, Egyptian snake godde ...
.
See also
*Augur
An augur was a priest and official in the classical Roman world. His main role was the practice of augury, the interpretation of the will of the gods by studying the flight of birds. Determinations were based upon whether they were flying ...
*Horus
Horus or Heru, Hor, Har in Ancient Egyptian, is one of the most significant ancient Egyptian deities who served many functions, most notably as god of kingship and the sky. He was worshipped from at least the late prehistoric Egypt until the ...
*Leda (mythology)
In Greek mythology, Leda (; Ancient Greek: Λήδα ) was an Aetolian princess who became a Spartan queen. According to Ovid, she was famed for her beautiful black hair and snowy skin. Her myth gave rise to the popular motif in Renaissance and ...
* Language of the birds
Literature
*Gimbutas, Marija and Campbell, Joseph, ''The Language of the Goddess'', Thames & Hudson (2001) Goddesses Legendary birds {{paganism-stub