Anasyrma

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St. Petersburg
.

Anasyrma (

religious rituals, eroticism, and lewd jokes (see, for example, Baubo
). The term is used in describing corresponding works of art.

Anasyrma may be a deliberately provocative self-exposing of one's naked

Aphrodite Kallipygos ("Aphrodite of the beautiful buttocks"). In other contexts, this gesture has an apotropaic character, that is, a means to ward off a supernatural enemy, or it may be a sign of mockery, analogous to mooning
.

Greek antiquity

Ermafrodito anasyromenos sketch by Peter Paul Rubens.

Ritual jesting and intimate exposure were common in the cults of

Eleusinian mysteries associated with these divinities. The mythographer Apollodorus says that Iambe's jesting was the reason for the practice of ritual jesting at the Thesmophoria, a festival celebrated in honor of Demeter and Persephone. In other versions of the myth of Demeter, the goddess is received by a woman named Baubo, a crone who makes her laugh by exposing herself, in a ritual gesture called anasyrma ("lifting [of skirts]"). A set of statuettes from Priene, a Greek city on the west coast of Asia Minor, are usually identified as "Baubo" figurines, representing the female body as the face conflated with the lower part of the abdomen. These appeared as counterparts to the phalluses
decorated with eyes, mouth, and sometimes legs, that appeared on vase paintings and were made as statuettes.

Terracotta

good luck
.

Apotropaic effect of nakedness

Many historical references suggest that anasyrma had dramatic or supernatural effect—positive or negative.

hailstorms, whirlwinds and lightning. If she strips naked and walks around a field of wheat, caterpillars, worms and beetles fall off the heads. Even when not menstruating, she can lull a storm out at sea by stripping.[4]

La Fontaine plate

According to folklore, women lifted their skirts to chase off enemies in Ireland and China.[5] A story from The Irish Times (September 23, 1977) reported a potentially violent incident involving several men, which was averted by a woman exposing her genitals to the attackers. According to Balkan folklore, when it rained too much, women would run into the fields and lift their skirts to scare the gods and end the rain.[6] Maimonides also mentions this ritual to ward off the rain while expressing his disapproval. Stripping away clothing was perceived as creating a "raw" state closer to nature than society, facilitating interaction with supernatural entities.[7] In Jean de La Fontaine's Nouveaux Contes (1674), a demon is repulsed by the sight of a woman lifting her skirt. Associated carvings, called sheela na gigs, were common on medieval churches in northern Europe and the British Isles.

In some nations of Africa, a woman stripping naked and displaying herself is still considered a curse and a means to ward off evil.[8]

In Nigeria, during mass protests against the petroleum industry, women displayed themselves in anasyrma.[9] Leymah Gbowee used anasyrma when trying to bring peace during the Second Liberian Civil War.[10]

See also

References

  1. .
  2. ^ Aileen Ajootian. "Hermaphroditos ανασυρόμενος: Revealing the Body" (PDF). University of Mississippi. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-12-16. Retrieved 2012-08-01.
  3. Jewish Encyclopedia
    . Retrieved 2013-06-26.
  4. .
  5. ^ "10 Questions: Miriam Robbins Dexter on the Power of Female Display". UCLA Program on Central Asia. October 6, 2010. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015. Retrieved 2012-08-01.
  6. ^ "Marina Abramovic: Balkan Erotic Epic". New York: Sean Kelly Gallery. December 9, 2005.
  7. .
  8. ^ Alexis Okeowo (March 21, 2011). "The Ivory Coast Effect". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2011-03-22.
  9. ^ Geraldine Sealey. "Naked Ploy Is Latest Threat in Oil Wars". ABC News. Archived from the original on 2018-07-01. Retrieved 2019-11-03.
  10. ^ Kevin Conley (December 2008). "The Rabble Rousers". O, The Oprah Magazine. Retrieved 2012-08-01.

Sources

Further reading

External links