ceremonies taking place within temples (Corbett 1970:157 n. 30 with references).
The material remains of strong-boxes further confirm the idea that ordinary wor-
shipers had access to the inside of temples. Herodas’ mime is certainly full of irony
and mocks the simple (and shrewd) character of the women, but it is also full of acute
observations about an everyday, unpretentious scenario: a sacrifice and a votive tablet
are offered to the gods in return for a cure, and the visit to the sanctuary is
pleasurable because it stimulates the senses through the beautiful items displayed in
it. Cynno, at least, is more than familiar with the place and situation and knows just
what to do. Her interaction with the religious official is matter of fact, almost playful,
even ironical (although she addresses him as ‘‘most mighty’’). She knows her
‘‘rights’’ and follows the rules; assertively she decides what to give to the gods and
their attendants.
The mime is an exceptional piece of evidence. In general, the literary record is silent
about the administration of sanctuaries, the interaction between worshipers and
religious personnel, and the responsibilities of the latter. Although the statements
and praises of Aelius Aristides are marvelous testimonies to the intense experiences of
a worshiper of Asclepius in the second century AD, they may not be representative of
religious experiences in earlier periods. Here, the bulk of our evidence is epigraphical
and consists in particular of cult regulations that deal with priestly duties and privil-
eges, the economic dimension of sanctuaries and orderly behavior within their
boundaries. As for the ‘‘historical accuracy of Herodas’ mime,’’ the scene could
have taken its stage directions straight from the cult regulation of the Amphiareum
at Oropus. Surprisingly, we get a very different general impression of the level of daily
activity in each case. Moreover, in the mime the role of the temple warden is no
longer that of a low-key ‘‘custodian’’ who attends to a deserted sanctuary during the
winter months.
The Eyes of the Worshiper: Night-time
At Oropus, the temple warden was instructed to inscribe the names and cities of the
god’s patients, but the cult regulation does not mention any record of the healing
process. However, sanctuaries of Amphiaraus and of other healing deities have yielded
wonderful insights into how patients experienced their night with Asclepius. Many
thankful worshipers dedicated votive reliefs with which they represented what had
happened to them (Van Straten 1976, 1981). A dedicatory relief from Oropus (or
Athens) from the end of the fifth century BC (Figure 10.2) bears the inscription
‘‘Archinos dedicated [this relief] to Amphiaraus,’’ and depicts the stages of Archinos’
healing. In the background on the right he is lying down and visited by a snake, who
is licking or possibly biting his right shoulder; the god himself in snake form is
watching over his patient. In the left foreground, the god, in human form, bearded
and supported by his staff, directly attends to a standing Archinos, touching the same
shoulder, possibly applying some dressing to a wound. In the center background, a
rectangular plaque or tablet mounted on a pillar depicts the dedicatory relief itself and
reminds the viewer of the religious and physical context of the whole scene. The effect
of visual representations such as the Archinos relief is powerful and enables us
to understand the meaning behind the multitude of dedicatory reliefs at any
170 Beate Dignas