Simply put, “The Goddesses and Gods of Old Europe” argues that the original settlers of southeastern Europe lived in societies that were ideal in many respects. Now, when they discuss the possibilities of living peacefully and in harmony with the earth, “we’re not just talking hypothetically anymore because of Gimbutas’ work,” says Eleanor Gadon, whose book, “The Once and Future Goddess: A Symbol for Our Time,” is being published by Harper & Row in October. Those ideas have kindled an interest in archeology among an unlikely amalgam of artists, feminists and other spiritually oriented people who find in her work confirmation of some of their most cherished beliefs. Nevertheless, Gimbutas, 68, a UCLA archeologist, is now heralded in some circles as an intellectual pioneer, mainly because of the allure of the ideas in her book. Although the book was reissued in 1982, it has been out of print since. Even its publisher, a British firm called Thames & Hudson, was so uncertain of the book’s success that it released the work in 1974 without publicity.
Reflecting the fact that its author, Lithuanian-born Marija Gimbutas, writes for an academic audience, its prose is wooden. Its subject matter, the spiritual practices of people living in southeastern Europe 6,000 to 8,000 years ago, usually holds appeal for few people other than a fraction of the world’s archeologists. IT IS HARD TO IMAGINE a book less likely than “The Goddesses and Gods of Old Europe” to cause a sensation.
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