Matrilineal Kinship In Aegean Prehistory: Settlements, Figurines, and the Absence of Men

Name: Matrilineal Kinship In Aegean Prehistory: Settlements, Figurines, and the Absence of Men
Start: 2025-10-16T18:00:00-07:00
Location: The Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture

Schedule

Thu, 16 Oct, 2025 at 06:00 pm

UTC-07:00

Location

The Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture | Spokane, WA

Spokane Society of the Archaeological Institute of America (AIA) Lecture
Thursday, October 16, 2025
6:30 pm - Lecture
MAC Auditorium or Zoom Meeting (Meeting ID - 841 2068 4037; Passcode: 004215)
Free and open to the public

October Lecture - Matrilineal Kinship In Aegean Prehistory: Settlements, Figurines, and the Absence of Men
Were communities in Prehistoric Greece Matriarchal, Matrilineal, or simply centered around women? This question has fascinated archaeologists for decades. Early on, figurines of women were often seen as "Mother Goddesses," meaning female deities often representing motherhood, fertility, and creation, but feminist scholars later cautioned against such broad interpretations. Still, the idea that ancient societies may have been organized around maternal kinship and matrilineal descent--where family ties pass through the mother--has resurfaced in recent years. In this talk, Dr. Sabina Cvecek revisits the debate, exploring what different types of evidence ethnographic examples to show that matrilineal kinship does not automatically mean women ruled, a key distinction for better understanding how these early societies were structured.

Dr. Sabine Cvecek, find out more about Dr. Cvecek
This lecture is sponsored by the National AIA organization.
The Spokane Chapter of the AIA is proud to provide a lecture series from September - April on various archaeological topics. The AIA promotes archaeological inquiry and public understanding of the material record of the human past to foster an appreciation of diverse cultures and our shared humanity. Find out more about the Archaeological Institute of America here.
2025-26 AIA Lectures:
November 20 - Poggio Civitate's Etrustcan Workshop: A Cross-Craft Perspective
January 15 - Early Peoples in the Plateau: Nimíipuu Knowledge and Landscape Adaptation in the Bitterroot Mountains