Ana Pániker prologue

Here is an invitation to discover a past buried by millennia of Judeo -Christian myths and their corresponding social order. Abundant in fascinating details, Merlin Stone tells us the story of the goddess who, under the name of Astarté, Isis or Ishtar, reigned in the Middle and next East. She was revered as the wise creator and source of the universal order, and not as a mere symbol of fertility. Under the auspices of the goddess, social roles were substantially different from those established by patriarchal cultures: women bought and sold properties, traded and inherited the last name and land of their mothers.

By documenting the generalized reworking of myth and religious dogmas, Merlin Stone describes an ancient conspiracy in which the goddess was presented as a licentious and depraved figure, a confirmed characterization and perpetuated by one of the best known legends of modern culture: The myth of Adam and the sinner Eva.

Penetrating and suggestive, this is an essential reading for those who are interested in the origin of the current gender roles and the rediscovery of women's power.