Series | Antiquity Studies
Edited book | Wine Cultures
Chapter | Intoxicating Nectars of Plenty
Intoxicating Nectars of Plenty
Reflections on Wine and Other Drinks in Ancient South Asia
Abstract
This introductory chapter frames the collection of papers. It is time that we moved beyond merely noting the presence of ‘imported’ Hellenistic wine imagery in Gandhāra, and the view of visual imagery as mere documentary evidence for wine culture in the region: surviving representations of wine culture from Gandhāra are just as layered and historically complex as Renaissance Venetian depictions of The Wedding at Cana. The papers in this issue add exactly that sort of nuance to our understanding of wine in Gandhāra. After a brief summary of what we know about early alcohol production and consumption in South Asia as a whole, the chapter considers what was distinctive about a vinocentric alcohol culture in Gandhāra. How did external trade in wine from Gandhāra affect wine culture in South Asia as a whole? As a somewhat exceptional drink in the South Asian context, how might wine culture have been considered in Buddhist contexts?
Submitted: Oct. 31, 2023 | Accepted: Jan. 15, 2024 | Published Oct. 8, 2024 | Language: en
Keywords Gandhāra • India • Alcohol • Buddhism • Wine • Intoxicants
Copyright © 2024 James McHugh. This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction is permitted, provided that the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. The license allows for commercial use. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Permalink http://doi.org/10.30687/978-88-6969-816-3/001
