Why is it important to question our biases when we examine the material culture of an ancient society? Even in our current society, just because it's a sword, this earring is marked for men. Yet here I am, a woman, thinking about getting it. One must be careful associating items to gender or sex - ThreadSky

ishtar.bsky.social • 79 days ago

Why is it important to question our biases when we examine the material culture of an ancient society?

Even in our current society, just because it's a sword, this earring is marked for men. Yet here I am, a woman, thinking about getting it.

One must be careful associating items to gender or sex

Comments

mattsiegel.bsky.social•79 days ago

my timeline thinks swords are for lesbians!

ishtar.bsky.social•79 days ago

That's because they are. Every sword that's ever been created in all of human history has been made for lesbians. Men have sneaked in and grabbed a few of them now and then, but they'll never be able to use them to their fullest potential!

mattsiegel.bsky.social•79 days ago

saethyr.bsky.social•79 days ago

In the myths, Inanna is said to have six weapons hanging on her back. Yet in modern art of her, I never see the weapons!

ishtar.bsky.social•79 days ago

That's because she has many different variations. And she's probably not a unified concept. She also has different forms, such as her war form and her love form. Inanna is more militant, and her syncretised parallel, Ishtar, is a bit more love and less war. But he's a very complicated character yes

ishtar.bsky.social•79 days ago

If you recall from her descent myth, she doesn't have her quiver of weapons. In fact, she doesn't in many of her stories. But you see it in some of the iconography, especially Inanna and early Sumer.

Of course, a lot of her iconography might be falsely attributed. It's complicated lol

saethyr.bsky.social•79 days ago

Didn't they take that away from her as she passed through the gates? Idk, but the descent story is the foundation of the modern worship of Inanna and we have to go through our own spiritual descent ourselves.

saethyr.bsky.social•79 days ago

I'm not claiming to know more than you, though. Admittably, I'm more concerned with the religious practice rather than rigorous academic studies. And there's aspects of the religion and academics that conflict, such as some academics suggesting that Inanna is parallel with Isis or Astarte.

ishtar.bsky.social•79 days ago

Well it's not so much about knowing more. I'm no expert, though I have taken one college course on that specific culture as part of my archeology studies.

There are various descent myth versions and translations. I did a analysis of several once to determine what she was actually wearing lol

saethyr.bsky.social•79 days ago

Nah, I see her forms more over as different faucets of her personality. I mostly see her princely form in my religious practice.

leafboy.bsky.social•79 days ago

Earring market "for men" is pretty limited tbh, lots of the styles are very femme coded and not advertised towards men or men's fashion.

It's "for men" because the default market is for women, which is annoying, but points to a larger issue of gendered everything

ishtar.bsky.social•78 days ago

Oh I understand. My fuss is not with marketing in this way. I'm using this as a example of a larger problem in archeology where we make the improper assumption that certain items are gendered - such as finding an earring in a grave assuming it's a woman, when it might be a man

leafboy.bsky.social•78 days ago

Ah I get you! Its always interesting when headlines are like "high priestess turns out to be high priest?!?" or whatever

Oh to be a fly on the wall of a hut, observing the sociality that doesn't preserve

leafboy.bsky.social•79 days ago

I think theres probably also an intersection of queerness too, since statement earrings are often seen as gay (hence the gay dangly earring trope!)

When searching for earrings/fashion I get it, because 90% of results will be gendered towards women. I hate it, but it's a heuristic

ishtar.bsky.social•78 days ago

I think you're also correct about some of the intersectionality. I am also queer, And don't always like things that are intended for women. The point is that human expression is quite diverse, and while trends can be found, they're not always true for the individual

leafboy.bsky.social•78 days ago

100%, I think I just took a very contemporary angle on your post while you were approaching it from the past (via the present). Thanks for the clarification!

I wonder what yet to be determined gender wizardry will be imposed on our present from the future 🤔

ishtar.bsky.social•78 days ago

It'll probably be a bit easier as we have a much more complex material culture that does a better job of defining our genders overtly. Unfortunately, intersex and non-binary people getting ignored. But that seems to be changing

leafboy.bsky.social•78 days ago

🤞🤞

I don't wanna presume the end of history, but I'd like to believe in the future

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