The call for contributions to the EAA session #213 Deposition in Water: A Practice and its Problems, organised by Jenny Wallensten and Gunnel Ekroth, is now open. The annual conference of the European Association of Archaeologists takes place at Athens, 26-29 August 2026.

Presentation of the session

The session proposes to deepen our understanding of why and how water was seen as a suitable element for deposition in ancient Greece. Focus lies on the dichotomy of water: on the one hand as the prime element for dealing with ritual pollution and absorbing impurity and dangers, and, on the other, water’s ability to cleanse and remove physical dirt, and to make things disappear, accidentally or on purpose. Was the choice of water as receptacle of either sacrifice or rubbish significant or simply convenient?

Contributions are invited on this double notion of water from one or more of these perspectives:
-The materiality of various bodies of water (springs, lakes, rivers, the sea, but also cisterns and wells) in relation to the matters deposited. Can we combine the dissolving and instable qualities of water with a physicality of deposition? What was the relation between the kind of deposition and the kind of receiving water?
-The agency/ies of different water-sources (the sea, a specific river or even a god versus made-made water installations). Does water receive by consent or does the full agency lie with the object deposited or with the depositor? Can anything be deposited anywhere?
-The spatiality of water in relation to immersion. How did the (act of) deposition in water affect, change or construct space?

Examples of immersion for ritual purposes in ancient Greece are well-known from literature, while deposition of garbage and waste is best evidenced by archaeology. To bridge this empirical imbalance, we seek contributions addressing a broad empirical perspective, exploring and integrating material culture and iconography with epigraphical and literary sources.

The panel will provide new insights about the role of water both in the religious sphere and in daily life in ancient Greece, especially from the perspectives of materiality, agency and space.

Organisers:

Jenny Wallensten, Swedish Institute at Athens: [email protected]

Gunnel Ekroth, Uppsala University: [email protected]

If you want to propose a contribution to the discussion panel (15 minutes), please submit an abstract of 150-300 words through the EAA portal : https://submissions.e-a-a.org/eaa2026

The deadline for abstract submissions is 5 February 2026, at 23.59 CET.

For more information, consult the conference website https://www.e-a-a.org/EAA2026/contributions or contact us for further questions.