The ‘Goddess’ interpretation of prehistoric European figurines

Record summary

During the 1970s and 1980s, archaeological and popular literature frequently identified prehistoric European figurines as representations of a widespread mother goddess or fertility cult. The lead is useful for comparing archaeological evidence with later feminist, neopagan and popular-religious reinterpretations. Figurines from Malta, the Balkans and Minoan Crete are real artefacts, but their meanings, identities and ritual settings vary greatly. Many specialists criticized the tendency to classify all female or corpulent figures under one religious system and emphasized local contexts and uncertain iconography.