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I’m not sure why there’s always so much focus on purpose. People build objects of geometric fascination as art objects all the time. I agree with you that there

I’m not sure why there’s always so much focus on purpose. People build objects of geometric fascination as art objects all the time. I agree with you that there need not be any religious significance here.

koromak 3y ago
But haven't these things been found all over the world? Like as far as Vietnam. We've found hundreds of them. "Its a cool object" doesn't quite explain its ubiquity, or the fact that they are almost identical looking despite which side of the globe their on. That suggests purpose to me.
- Ekaros 3y ago
  Wheels and balls have also been found across the world. Dodecahedrons are fundamental shapes. Thus universal. And also expected size would be pretty much same. In general symmetry is pleasant. So I would expect symmetric shapes to come up when people have enough time and resources to build them, even if they have no use.
  - eigenket 3y ago
    Dodecahedrons with nobs on the vertices aren't really fundamental shapes. As far as I'm aware there have been zero found without the nobs on, and hundreds found with the nobs.
  - lproven 3y ago
    They are not symmetrical, though.
Towaway69 3y ago
Agree, why does it always have to be a religious object if an object doesn't have a clear and distinct purpose attached to it. I guess when future archeologist dig up our junk they'd believe we were an extremely religious society, with many superstitions and strange beliefs. /s
- marcosdumay 3y ago
  "Ritualistic" doesn't mean "religious". All it means is that the way the object was used has no relation to the functionality of the object itself.
- stevage 3y ago
  The article explains that this helps answer the question of why they aren't written about in the historical record, which is a big question.
nemo 3y ago
>why does it always have to be a religious object if an object doesn't have a clear and distinct purpose attached to it. Worth looking at how the Romans themselves thought. They were incredibly superstitious, overbearingly and obsessively religious (this is Roman Catholicism's roots), they believed in magic and spirits, constantly consulted oracles, augury, and other signs to make important decisions, and key roles in the Roman government was run by people who were also priests, in the Republic and early Empire most civic functions were also religious, and after Caesar they regularly deified their leaders. Given that this object was clearly precious to its owners (found in treasure hoards/graves), wasn't used as a tool where it would receive any wear, and no one discussed it at all, a cult object would make a great deal of sense. Perhaps Gallic Rome had a regional cult these are tied to. There's a massive number of other Roman ritual objects, magic tablet, amulets, curse tablets, and other religious ephemera, the Romans really loved their cults and rites, if you have an unknown Roman object that's conspicuously not spoken about like these things, that itself is a fair reason to suspect the object might be used in secret religious/cult rites.

koromak 3y ago

But haven't these things been found all over the world? Like as far as Vietnam. We've found hundreds of them. "Its a cool object" doesn't quite explain its ubiquity, or the fact that they are almost identical looking despite which side of the globe their on. That suggests purpose to me.

Ekaros 3y ago
Wheels and balls have also been found across the world. Dodecahedrons are fundamental shapes. Thus universal. And also expected size would be pretty much same. In general symmetry is pleasant. So I would expect symmetric shapes to come up when people have enough time and resources to build them, even if they have no use.
- eigenket 3y ago
  Dodecahedrons with nobs on the vertices aren't really fundamental shapes. As far as I'm aware there have been zero found without the nobs on, and hundreds found with the nobs.
- lproven 3y ago
  They are not symmetrical, though.

Towaway69 3y ago

Agree, why does it always have to be a religious object if an object doesn't have a clear and distinct purpose attached to it. I guess when future archeologist dig up our junk they'd believe we were an extremely religious society, with many superstitions and strange beliefs. /s

marcosdumay 3y ago
"Ritualistic" doesn't mean "religious". All it means is that the way the object was used has no relation to the functionality of the object itself.
stevage 3y ago
The article explains that this helps answer the question of why they aren't written about in the historical record, which is a big question.

nemo 3y ago

>why does it always have to be a religious object if an object doesn't have a clear and distinct purpose attached to it. Worth looking at how the Romans themselves thought. They were incredibly superstitious, overbearingly and obsessively religious (this is Roman Catholicism's roots), they believed in magic and spirits, constantly consulted oracles, augury, and other signs to make important decisions, and key roles in the Roman government was run by people who were also priests, in the Republic and early Empire most civic functions were also religious, and after Caesar they regularly deified their leaders. Given that this object was clearly precious to its owners (found in treasure hoards/graves), wasn't used as a tool where it would receive any wear, and no one discussed it at all, a cult object would make a great deal of sense. Perhaps Gallic Rome had a regional cult these are tied to. There's a massive number of other Roman ritual objects, magic tablet, amulets, curse tablets, and other religious ephemera, the Romans really loved their cults and rites, if you have an unknown Roman object that's conspicuously not spoken about like these things, that itself is a fair reason to suspect the object might be used in secret religious/cult rites.