"In Mother of the Gods, Philippe Borgeaud traces the journey of this divine figure through Asia Minor, Greece, and Rome between the sixth century B.C.E. and the fourth century C.E. He examines how the Mother of the gods was integrated into specific cultures, what she represented to those who worshipped her, and how she was used as a symbol in art, myth, and even politics. The Mother of the gods was often seen as a dualistic figure: ancestral and foreign, aristocratic and disreputable, nurturing and dangerous. Borgeaud's challenging and nuanced portrait opens new windows on the ancient world's sophisticated religious beliefs and shifting cultural identities."--Jacket.