author
Martin P. (Martin Persson) Nilsson
1874–1967
A leading scholar of ancient religion, Martin P. Nilsson brought together literary, archaeological, and historical evidence to explore the origins of Greek myth and ritual. His influential books helped shape the modern study of Greek, Hellenistic, and Roman religion.
1 Audiobook
Primitive time-reckoning : a study in the origins and first development of the art of counting time among the primitive and early culture peoples
by Martin P. (Martin Persson) Nilsson
About the author
Born in Stoby, Sweden, in 1874, Martin Persson Nilsson became a prominent philologist, mythographer, and historian of religion. He studied at the University of Lund, earned his doctorate in 1900, and later served as professor of Ancient Greek, Classical Archaeology, and Ancient History there from 1909 until 1939.
Nilsson was known for connecting surviving literary traditions with archaeological evidence and older prehistoric material. His research examined how Greek mythological cycles and religious practices developed over time, with particular attention to the Greek, Hellenistic, and Roman worlds.
Among his best-known works are A History of Greek Religion, The Mycenaean Origin of Greek Mythology, and Greek Popular Religion. He also served as rector of Lund University and held memberships in several learned academies before his death in Lund in 1967.