Crossdressing Minoan Priests

[helens_daughter]

One of the scenes on one side of the Agia Triadha sarcophagus.  A priest and priestesses make offerings.  Yes, a priest.  Like the Egyptians, the Minoans color-coded their genders.  So that woman with the dark skin playing the lyre is actually a man.  From this and other evidence, we know that Minoan priests wore women’s vestments during some rituals.  Perhaps it was to be able to participate in women’s rites to honor a goddess, who demanded that men cross-dress in her honor, or some other religious reason.  Without written evidence, we can’t know for sure.

Comments

Thank you!

[ysabetwordsmith]

I am always interested in the history of gender dynamics, especially unusual examples like this.