“Andrômeda de Méroe”: A conectividade sociocultural da Grécia e Cuxe no teatro e na cerâmica ática (442 – 412 a.C.)

Abstract

The research focuses on the myth of Andromeda - barbarian princess and daughter of Cepheus, king of Aitiopia - transformed into a tragic heroine by Sophocles and Euripides, starting to illustrate hundreds of Attic ceramic vases. It understands that Andromeda, as a mythical character, can be considered as a representation of the women of the Meroite nobility that allows establishing similarities and differences between them and the well-born Athenians. In this way, the question arose about the nature of the contacts established between Greece and Aitiopia, since Andromeda (ca. 442 BC) by Sophocles was contemporary with Histories (440 BC) by Herodotus, which, in turn, preceded Andromeda (412. BC) by Euripides. As the study progressed, it was possible to verify that in Greek texts, the term Aitiopia was used to designate the African kingdom of Kush. The notion of connectivity, by emphasizing the Mediterranean Sea as a means of communication that works by connecting points and forming a set of bonds, allowed us to verify that Greeks and Kushites engaged in sociocultural relationships throughout Antiquity. In order to corroborate this understanding, the study focused on analyzing aspects of Athenian society, emphasizing the two tragedies of Andromeda and the ceramic vases illustrated with theatrical scenes. Then, he focused on the elements of African geography to understand the natural means that made it possible for the two peoples to approach, according to the model of the Theory of Social Connectivity. Thus, he turned his efforts to systematize an investigation of the kingdom of Kush, to examine the social function of royal Meroites, emphasizing their participation in the religious and political sphere. Therefore, the research inferred that the daughter of the king of the “Ethiopians”, united with Perseus, originated the royal lineage of Mycenae, certifies the existence of sociocultural connectivity between Greece and Kush, in addition to claiming the ideological belonging of the barbarian princess to the defended ideals by the polis: transformed into a tragic heroine, Andromeda emulates the behavior and values of the queens and princesses of the mythical Greek past, when she accepts her terrible destiny in favor of the salvation of the community.