Full Title: The Strange World of Human Sacrifice
Series: Studies in History and Anthropology of Religion 01
Editor: Jan N. Bremmer
Publisher: Peeters
Published: 2007
ISBN: 978-90-429-1843-6
Pages: 268 including Index of names, subjects and passages that starts on page 259
SYNOPSIS:
**description from GoodReads.com
REVIEW:
Essays
– Human Sacrifice: A Brief Introduction: this introductory essay sets up the rest of the book very well. It gives a brief introduction into what this book is about, a little introduction to each essay and the controversies surrounding Human Sacrifice.
– Aztec Human Sacrifice as Expiation
– Human Sacrifice in Medieval Irish Literature: I was very interested in reading this essay and though it was a little limited in what it discussed because of space constraints it was still an informative read.
– Myth and Ritual in Greek Human Sacrifice: Lykaon, Polyxena, and the case of the Rhodian Criminal
– The Early Christians and Human Sacrifice
– Child Sacrifice in Ancient Israel: The Status Quaestionis.
– Human Sacrifice in Ancient Egypt
– Retainer Sacrifice in Egypt and in Nubia
– Human Sacrifice in India in Vedic Times and Before
– Human Sacrifice (Purusamedha), Construction Sacrifice and the Origin of the Idea of the “Man of the Homestead” (Vāstupurusa)
– Human Sacrifice Among the Konds
– Human Sacrifice in Japan
– Human Sacrifice and Self-sacrifice in China: A Century of Revelation
The book pretty much circumvented the globe with its study of human sacrifices. It was really interesting to read about the differences and similarities for the reasons behind human sacrifices. This book held my interest until the very last minute.
If you are looking for a book about human sacrifice but not focused fully on the Celts then this is a great resource to have.
Celtic Scholar's Reviews and Opinions 