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Jim (T.S.F.) Saviour Gods and Soteria in Ancient Greece. Pp. xiv + 319, ills, maps. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2022. Cased, £75, US$100. ISBN: 978-0-19-289411-3.

Within the field of ancient religion, the study of divine names, epithets and naming practices has flourished in the last ten years, and this monograph adds to this growing subfield by offering an exploration of saviour gods and the related concept of soteria in ancient Greece. The remit of the book is wider than its title suggests: it intends to analyse not only gods called saviour and not only the language of soteria and related terms such as the epithets Soter and Soteira. Instead, it aims to offer a full examination of the concept of ‘saving’ or ‘deliverance’ in ancient Greece, and thus goes beyond a semantic study of soteria vocabulary to investigate various expressions by which the Greeks articulated hopes for deliverance and safety. J. aims to uncover what it means to call a deity or a human being ‘saviour’. And in a world where multiple gods reigned, which gods did the Greeks invoke for soteria, and why?

The argument is presented in six chapters. The first chapter traces the development of soteria language and the concept of ‘deliverance’ from Homeric epic to the classical period. J. argues that a heightened awareness of ‘salvation’ emerged among the Greeks after the unprecedented threat of the Persian invasions of the 490s–470s bce. By the fourth century, soteria had acquired multiple meanings: not only deliverance from physical destruction, often tied to seafaring and warfare, but sometimes also political autonomy, linking it to eleutheria (‘freedom’).

Chapters 2 and 3 provide surveys of the evidence for why and when worshippers invoked their gods as protectors, focusing on communal and individual worship, respectively. J. emphasises the individuality and variety present in appellations of saviour gods, showcasing intriguing examples such as Hellenistic graffiti invoking Pan Soter from the El-Kanais shrine in Egypt. These examples illustrate the repeating and ephemeral nature of soteria, which requires constant renewal. The capacity of dedications to encompass both gratitude for specific moments of ‘saving’ and...

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