In Religious Life in Late Classical and Hellenistic Rhodes, Juliane Zachhuber offers a nuanced and methodologically grounded analysis of Rhodian religion from the 4th to the 1st century BCE, with a special focus on local dynamics after the synoecism of 408/7 BCE. The book stands out for the originality of its structure and its ambition to interpret religious phenomena as a dynamic field of social, political, and cultural interaction rather than as a static system of beliefs and practices.
Religion, in this framework, is not merely a reflection of civic life but an active agent in constructing civic memory and political tension. Particular attention is paid to the interplay between local traditions and centripetal forces following synoecism, in a careful balancing of local and pan-Rhodian perspectives. The book focuses on the religious landscape of the island itself, drawing some useful comparisons with the Rhodian Peraia and the islands of the Dodecanese, though without undertaking a systematic study of cultic correspondences.
The structure of the book highlights both continuities and ruptures in the religious practices of the various communities that made up the Rhodian political entity. The first section sets the chronological and social context for the investigation. Particular attention is paid to the foundation mythology of Rhodes and its three original centres, Ialysos, Cameiros, and Lindos, where religion played a crucial role in identity formation. Despite the fragmentary nature of pre-synoecism sources, Zachhuber effectively uses them to highlight ideological continuities that would foster unification. Synoecism is dealt with as a pivotal religious shift as well, marked by the rise of Helios as a supra-demotic deity. This theme, thoroughly explored in Chapter 4, begins to emerge early on as central to understanding how religion contributes to the reorganization of civic structures. A key example is the priest of Helios assuming the eponymous role, thereby providing Rhodes with a distinctive religiously-grounded chronology. Zachhuber clearly outlines the implications of this innovation and the tension it introduces between traditional centres and the symbolic centralization embodied by the new Rhodian capital.
Chapter 3 is particularly valuable for its methodological clarity, as Zachhuber lays out her approach to epigraphy and spatial analysis. Greek religion as a public phenomenon is fully explored here: inscriptions are read within their urban and monumental contexts, integrating textual analysis with archaeological evidence. The author emphasizes both the chronological span (epigraphic production peaks in the 2nd to 1st centuries BCE and declines in imperial times) and local geography. Lindos and Cameiros yield the richest evidence, partly due to more intensive excavation. The two cities differ significantly: Cameiros is more connected to the Peraia and the Carian Chersonnesos, while Lindos retains a conservative identity anchored in the cult of Athena Lindia.
The typology of the inscriptions reflects the complex religious and political dynamics: public decrees from city-states and private koina; lists of religious officials, especially the eponymous priest of Helios; and statue bases with honorific decrees that blur the line between public and private spheres. Religious careers are depicted as collective, familial, and civic, with individuals often holding multiple priesthoods. This richly textured overview sets the stage for the thematic analysis in following chapters.
Chapter 4, the analytical heart of the book, focuses on the two major cults of the island: Helios as a rising supra-local god, and Athena Lindia as a bearer of demotic traditions. Zachhuber traces their transformations diachronically.
Of special interest is her analysis of Helios, whose cultic location had long remained elusive. On the basis of epigraphic evidence (especially lists of prophatai), she locates his sanctuary on the acropolis of Rhodian city, identifying it—following Wolfram Hoepfner—with the so-called temenos of Apollo Pythios. The analysis of iconography and cult further supports this syncretic reading, linking Helios with other important deities in Rhodes, such as Poseidon. Her reinterpretation of the Colossus of Rhodes as a religious symbol representing the cult of the god Helios, not merely a political monument, is particularly insightful. Although closely tied to Rhodian elites, Helios’ cult is also attested in rural areas and the Peraia, confirming his pan-Rhodian centrality.
The cult of Athena, especially in her Lindian form, signifies continuity with the pre-synoecism past. While Athena Polias appears elsewhere on the island, Athena Lindia remained particularly vital in the Hellenistic period, unlike the cults of Ialysos and Cameiros, which declined as the capital expanded. Athena’s association with Zeus Polieus and the recurring use of water symbolism in her cult are carefully analysed, particularly through the lens of the Lindos inscription of 99 BCE, the “Chronicle of Lindos”, which provides detailed ritual and devotional information.
Chapters 5 and 6 shift from a comparative to a local perspective. Zachhuber explores religious life in the original three cities and in the capital, relying on accurate epigraphic and monumental evidence. These chapters reveal the local specificity of each sanctuary while acknowledging external influences. In Cameiros, for example, traditional deities like Hestia and the Presbytas coexist with Asclepius, Aphrodite, and Sarapis, reflecting contact with Caria and Egypt. Helios appears again, reinforcing his cross-regional prominence.
In considering the evolution of the Rhodian pantheon, the author chooses a periodization based on a number of events that she considers crucial in the history of the island: the synoecism, the siege by Demetrios Poliorketes in 305 BCE, the earthquake of 227 BCE, and the siege by Mithridates. Religion emerges as a key lens for understanding Rhodian identity, highlighting its adaptability and resilience as it keeps negotiating between tradition and change. The analysis of the religious context of the Rhodian polis reveals elements of innovation and cosmopolitanism, characteristic of a newly founded city. Nonetheless, certain continuities persist, as demonstrated by the cult of Helios, which remains firmly rooted in the island’s foundational mythology and tradition.
The final section focuses on the social forces shaping Rhodian religion and the religious officers. Chapter 7 defines priestly roles and selection mechanisms, using a prosopographic approach to trace careers of some relevant individuals. These careers often culminate in prestigious positions associated with Helios or Athena Lindia, thus underlining the relevance of their cults on the island. The analysis confirms the enduring importance of local cults, reflecting persistent tension between centralization and localism. Zachhuber shows how religious offices were tightly woven into the social and political fabric of Rhodian aristocracy.
Inscriptions frequently depict collective religious agency, with multiple family members acting as dedicants. Gender analysis of religious officers highlights a conventional landscape: priesthoods were largely limited to elite male citizens. Women appear only marginally, usually associated with male relatives.[1]
Chapter 8 turns to religious associations (koina), crucial for understanding Rhodian cultic experience. Far from being peripheral, these groups bridged public and private spheres, often involving elite individuals already engaged in official priesthoods. Associations served as extensions of public cult, offering inclusive spaces for foreigners and marginal groups. The epigraphic corpus is meticulously analysed, thus contributing to recent studies on the associative phenomenon in Rhodes.[2] The table on pages 312–313 allows for a systematic reconstruction of the deities worshipped by Rhodian associations.
Far from offering a simple repertoire of cults, Zachhuber reconstructs a living religiosity, articulated in its relationships with urban space, civic identities and interpersonal dynamics. Theophoric names and group titles guide an exploration of the internal cultic practices of the koina, revealing hybrid, semi-public forms of ritual. The case of Nikasioneioi Olympiastai, presented on pages 348-350, exemplifies this phenomenon by replicating civic cultic forms on a smaller scale. While precise locations of places of worship are hard to identify archaeologically, Zachhuber convincingly suggests that some associations used public spaces, pointing to partial integration into civic life. Maritime associations, in particular, underscore the connection between religion and the preeminent naval élite in Rhodes, highly connected with the presence of maritime deities in the Rhodian pantheon and water attributes often ascribed to gods and goddesses.
In conclusion, Juliane Zachhuber’s book offers an innovative and well-documented reading of Rhodian religious life, with a productive emphasis on local dynamics. The Rhodian political system, shaped by synoecism but still grounded in older city identities, emerges clearly in religious practice, where central and local forms coexisted in negotiation and overlap rather than hierarchy. Religion here is not merely a reflection of civic institutions, but a tool through which diverse affiliations—whether to city, sub-polis divisions, koinon, or family—were articulated.
One of the volume’s strengths is its rejection of binary oppositions: Rhodian religion is presented as a dynamic whole, shifting with historical rhythms. The diachronic perspective distinguishes patterns of continuity and rupture, while spatial anchoring grounds the analysis in lived experience. Epigraphy serves not merely as documentation but as interpretive key to understanding cultic structure, management, and social function.
Religion is also used as a lens to reassess internal political tensions, such as frictions between demoi before synoecism (pp. 47–48), or the interaction between Cameiros and the Peraia (pp. 196, 198), where cultic sharing reflects regional integration. Political change clearly influenced cultic form and visibility.
Less developed is the gender dimension, which, while acknowledged, remains traditional, with limited engagement with female agency. This is one of the few areas where the volume is less innovative. Otherwise, the work successfully combines methodological rigor, extensive source analysis, and clear exposition, making it a major contribution to the religious history of the Hellenistic Mediterranean.
Religious Life in Late Classical and Hellenistic Rhodes is a foundational and innovative contribution to the study of Hellenistic Greek religion. Its micro-historical focus and epigraphic depth allow readers to grasp religious transformation not as peripheral, but as central to Rhodes’ political and social evolution from the 4th to the 1st century BCE. A reference work for scholars of Greek religion, epigraphy, and Hellenistic political culture.
Notes
[1] For a more in-depth analysis of the role of women in religious offices in Rhodes, see the article by the same author, “The Lost Priestesses of Rhodes? Female Religious Offices and Social Standing in Hellenistic Rhodes” (Kernos 31, 2018), which specifically addresses the epigraphic evidence and the social status of Rhodian priestesses.
[2] For example, Boyxen, Benedikt, 2018. Fremde in der Hellenistischen Polis Rhodos: Zwischen Nähe und Distanz. Berlin; Boston, and Thomsen, Christian. 2020. The Politics of Association in Hellenistic Rhodes. Edinburgh.