The Specialized Religions of Ancient Mediterranean Seafarers

Abstract

Ancient seafarers faced dangers and fears posed by the sea and sailing. Specialized religious beliefs and practices developed accordingly. Sailors honored deities whose attributes could benefit or devastate a voyage. Divine patrons were worshipped in harbor and at promontory shrines. Ships were considered imbued with a protective spirit and contained sacred spaces. Mariners performed religious ceremonies on land and at sea to protect their voyages. Specialized features are found in funerary practices and mortuary rituals of seafarers. Maritime religions were subsets of ancient religions, generated by unique uncertainties and perils at sea.