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The Festivals

Note: For alternate month names, please see Months.

The 1st of the month is celebrated as the Noumenia, the feast of the Visible New Moon. This is also sometimes called the Enikainea, the "Old and New."

The 15th of the month is celebrated as the Dikhomenia (from the ancestor of the modern word dikhiazo "I bisect, I divide"), which occurs on or very close to the full moon. This day is sacred to Selene, the goddess of the full moon.

Certain other days are considered sacred to particular gods and goddesses as well. Readers will not that these are almost entirely confined to the first decade of the month, as moon is waxing.

The 2nd is sacred to the Agathos Daimon, the "Good Spirit" (roughly equivalent to a combination of the Will and the guardian angel of each person), the 3rd to Athena, the 4th to Aphrodite and to Hermes (and sometimes also to Herakles), the 6th to Artemis, the 7th to Apollo, the 8th to Poseidon and sometimes also to Theseus, particularly in Athens. The last day of the month, whether the 29th or 30th, is sacred to Hekate.

The following descriptions of the festivals are a slightly edited version of Seasonal Festivals of the Greeks and Romans, a series of articles by Apollonius Sophistes, reprinted here with his very kind permission. For the full text, which includes references and a large number of Roman festivals not included here, along with much other valuable information such as the article Neoclassical Celebratory Sacrifice, please visit The Omphalos.

Festivals by Month

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Boedromion

Many of the Greek and Roman festivals of this season celebrate the end of the military campaigning season. At the end of September and beginning of October, however, the emphasis shifts to the Corn Mothers and other agricultural deities. In many Greek states the month beginning mid-September was called Demetrion after Demeter (though it was called Boedromion in Athens).
Genesia — 5th

This is the Athenian festival in honour of the dead. (Of course, families honour their own dead on their anniversaries.) There are lamentations and speeches of praise. In ancient times, the autumn equinox (approximately) marked the end of the summer campaigning season, so several of these festivals (Genesia, Kharisteria, Boedromia) relate to the cessation of fighting.
 
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Kharisteria — 6th

This day is a feast for Artemis Agrotera (Huntress), for the 6th day is Her birthday. (After the Athenian victory at Marathon this festival became known as Kharisteria, "Thanksgiving.")
 
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Boedromia — 7th

This is a minor thanksgiving festival for Apollo (since the 7th day is His birthday), in gratitude to Him as a rescuer in war.
 
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Great Mysteries of Eleusis — 15th-21st

In origin the Great (Eleusinian) Mysteries were a festival for the autumn sowing. They are, of course, mysteries, so some things about them remain concealed, in particular, the contents of the Sacred Kistai (boxes) and the actual initiation of the Mystai (Initiates). Anyone can be initiated, regardless of age or sex.
 
The festival is conducted by the Arkhon Basileus and four assistants. Two of these, the Hierophantes and Dadoukhos (Torch Bearer), wear the ependytes (a long-sleeved tunic ornamented at the hem and shoulders), headband and Thrakian knee-boots; they carry one or two long torches. Further, there are Mystagogoi (Initiate Guides), who guide individual postulants, often their friends, through the initiation.
 
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Preparation — 13th-14th

Preparations begin two days before the Mysteries proper (13th Boedromion): on the 13th two mounted Epheboi (Youths) travel to Eleusis and and on the 14th they accompany Ta Hiera (the Holy Things), contained in round Kistai bound with purple ribbons, which are brought by wagon to Athens, where they are received at the shrine (Eleusinion). (Mylonas has guessed that Ta Hiera are Mykenean goddess figures.) An official, the Phaidryntes (Cleaner) of the Two Goddesses, reports their arrival to Athena's priestess (as at the Skira, Athena's priestess pays her respects to Demeter's). (The Two Goddesses are, of course, Demeter and Persephone, but Their names are considered too sacred to be mentioned in the rites.)
 
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1st Day: Agyrmos (Gathering) — 15th

The would-be Mystai, who must have already been initiated in the Lesser Mysteries, gather in the Agora. The Kerykes (Herald) calls for them to step forward, and informs them that they must have "a soul conscious of no evil" and that they "must have lived well and justly." Those afflicted by blood-guilt or other impurity are warned away. At this time names may be taken, and it may be ensured that the postulant is already initiated in the Lesser Mysteries. The postulant spends the remainder of the day in spiritual exercises recommended by his or her Mystagogos.
 
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2nd Day: "Seaward, Initiates" — 16th

The second day is for purification. The postulants travel to the sea (or other place of ritual cleansing). On the order "Seaward, Initiates!" they enter the water with their offering so that both may be purified by salt water.
 
In ancient times the offering was a piglet, which was supplied to the postulant, for the pig is sacred to Demeter. In the evening the piglet was sacrificed and the postulant was sprinkled with its blood; later there might be a feast on the pork. Nowadays we might use an ear of corn as an offering and sprinkle the postulant with water in which the corn has been boiled.
 
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3rd Day: "Hither the Victims" — 17th

The third day is for the main sacrifice to the Two Goddesses. (See "NeoClassical Sacrifice" by Apollonios Sophistes for more details.)
 
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4th Day: Epidauria — 18th

On this day the postulant secludes him- or herself indoors to prepare mentally for the initiation. There are also celebrations for the god Asklepios, for on this day in 420 BCE He came, with his daughter Hygeia (Health) and His sacred snake, and requested the Eleusinian initiation.
 
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5th Day: March to Eleusis — 19th

The mounted Epheboi, the postulant Mystai, their Mystagogoi, initiated Mystai, and the officicals escort Ta Hiera back to Eleusis. The procession begins at the shrine of Iakkhos, and his priest, the Iakkhogogos (Iakkhos Guide), leads the procession with the sacred image of Iakkhos, which depicts Him as a torch-bearing youth. Iakkhos is the Eleusinian name of Dionysos/Bakkhos; in the procession He is the joyous attendant of the Two Goddesses, and mediates between Them and the Mystai. The marchers are accompanied by musicians (flute, harp, voice); all join in the ecstatic cry, "Iakkhe!" ("Shout!")

The Mystai wear garlands of myrtle and may carry bakkhoi, which are bundles of myrtle branches tied with wool; they may also carry a sack of travel necessities on a pole. Religious observances ar made a sacred sites along the way. At one place the Krokidai tie a yellow woolen thread (kroke) on the right hand and left leg of each postulant. At another place disguised men verbally abuse the postulants, which may drive away bad luck. The final part of the procession is by torchlight, because Demeter is traditionally depicted seeking Kore by torchlight.

At night the postulant offers to Demeter the Kernos, which is an earthenware dish with many small cups attached; small offerings of the fruits of the earth (grain, peas, beans, etc.) are placed in the cups. The postulant shares these with the Goddess.
 
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6th Day: Initiation — 20th

On the day of Initiation sacrifices of corn meal are made to the Two Goddesses. In sympathy with Demeter when she mourned the absent Kore, the postulants fast and prepare themselves mentally for the sacred rite. Towards evening, like Demeter when she accepted the drink from Metanaira, the postulants drink the Kykeon (mixed drink), comprising water, barley meal, and pennyroyal. (There is debate about the ingredients of the Kykeon, but this is the formula given in the "Homeric Hymn to Demeter.")

The initiation, which lasts throughout the night, takes place in a closed building caled the Telesterion (Initiation Place); in its centre is the Anaktoron (Place of the Anax — King), the "Holy of Holies" to which no-one but the Hierophantes (Revealer) is admitted. The specifics of the initiation are, of course, secret, and have not been revealed to this day (though a great deal of conjecture has been published). However, they involve Things Said, Things Done, and Things Revealed. There is music, song, and speech; there are ritual actions; there are revelations by torchlight. Thereby the Mystai participate in Demeter's joy at the restoration of Persephone. The effect of the Mysteries on the initiate is profoundly transfomative. Even the clothes worn during the initiation are consecrated thereafter.

The Epoptai (Those Who Have Seen) are the initiates of the highest level (who must have been Mystai for at least one year), who have beheld the supreme symbol of Demeter, as Triptolemos, the first Initiate, beheld it, and they have witnessed the Hieros Gamos (Sacred Marriage) of Demeter and Zeus.
 
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7th Day: Plemokhoai — 21st

Each Mystes has two water-filled Plemokhoai (Flowing Floodtides), which are earthenware vessels shaped like a spinning-top. One is tipped out to the east and the other to the west, while the Mystes pronounces a spell known only to initiates.
 
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Pyanepsion

Proerosia — 5th

This is a festival for Demeter's blessings in preparation for the ploughing and sowing at the beginning of the agricultural season (proerosia = things before the time of tillage); in ancient times it was held at Eleusis. It immediately precedes the Pyanepsia (see above), held in honor of Pythian Apollo, because His oracle told the Athenians to initiate the Proerosia in order to bring a worldwide famine to an end. Upon command of the Hierophantes, the Sacred Herald proclaims the Proerosia, recounts the myth of its founding, and calls for the first-fruits offering (mostly cereals, especially barley and wheat).
 
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Pyanepsia — 7th

The Pyanepsia is a festival of late autumn fruit gathering that seeks divine blessings for the autumn sowing. This very ancient festival is primarily in honor of Phoebos Apollo as sun god, but also for Helios (Sun) and the Horai (Hours); all are considered vegetation deities, perhaps through Their connection with the sun. Further, since Mykenaian times the earth-born Athenians have considered themselves descendants of the Sun (whom the Mykenaians may have called Pa-ya-wo = Phoibos = Bright) and Ge (Earth). Thus the festival is held on the seventh day, for on the seventh of each (Greek) month (which is the first quarter of the moon) Apollo's birthday is celebrated. The Pyanepsia corresponds to the spring Thargelia (7 Thargelion).

In the procession each Pais Amphithales (Child with Two Living Parents) carries an Eiresione. Typically an Eiresione is an olive branch carried by a supplicant and wrapped round with wool (eiros = wool), but in this case it is a laurel branch (sacred to Apollo), perhaps two to three feet long, decorated with real fruit and models of harps, cups and vine-branches made of pastry, all symbols of fruitfulness. In a kind of Trick-or-Treat the children bring these to each house and sing:

Th' Eiresione bears rich cakes and figs and honey in a jar, and olive oil to sanctify yourself, and cups of mellow wine that you may drink and fall asleep.

If the occupant gives a gift to the children, he earns an Eiresione and the yearlong blessing it conveys. Normally it is fastened above the door of the house, as it is over the door of the sanctuary of Apollo when the procession reaches it. If no Pais Amphithales comes to your home, you may bless it with your own Eiresione.

The festival derives its name from a stew of boiled beans (pyanon epsein = to boil beans) and other leguminous vegetables and cereals that is boiled in a pot (khytros) and shared by the celebrants and the God; it is a typical Greek Panspermia (All-seeds). According to legend this was the votive offering Theseus and his crew made to Apollo when they returned to Greece on this day, for it was all that was left of their provisions. On the other hand, it is typical of a sowing ritual to combine all the edible plants to be sown and to share them with the God, praying that the next year may be bountiful.
 
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Oskhophoria — 7th

The Oskhophoria is a vintage and wine-pressing festival, in thanks to Dionysos, held on the same day as the Pyanepsia, when the Mysteries of Dionysos were also held. Thus we find the two apparent polar opposites, Dionysos and Apollo, honored on the same day, but we must not forget that They also shared the sanctuary at Delphi: Apollo honored there in the summer, Dionysos in winter (when Apollo is in Hyperborea). An ancient krater (mixing bowl) shows them shaking hands over the Omphalos at Delphi.

There is a procession from the temple of Dionysos to the temple of Athena Skira, for the grape harvest is one aspect of Her concern for the well-being of the community (cf. the Arrhephoria and Skirophoria, both in mid-late June). This aspect of Athena may derive from the vine goddess Skiras, worshipped in Salamis, whence She came to Athens (see the Skirophoria discussion for another idea of the meaning of skira).

The procession is headed by the two Oskhophoroi (Vine-branch Bearers), young men who carry branches still bearing grapes (oskhoi) and are dressed as women, which recalls the androgyny of Dionysos, for they wear the same Ionic khiton (ankle-length tunic) as He sometimes does. Behind them comes a chorus singing special hymns to the God.

They are accompanied by a herald, who has a garland wrapped round his staff, rather than around his head, as would be the normal custom. This was explained by the Theseus myth: when his herald told the Athenians of Theseus' return, in their joy they tried to crown him with a wreath, but he refused it because he had learned of the tragic death of Theseus' father. Therefore he returned to Theseus with the wreath wrapped around his staff.

The procession also includes Deipnophoroi (Dinner Carriers), women who bring the food for the sacred feast that follows the sacrifice. A portion of the meat is burned for the God and some is eaten by the celebrants; the rest is divided to be taken home. Stories are told during the feast, especially the story of Theseus and Ariadne, and how she was claimed by Dionysos. The Deipnophoroi represent the Mothers of the Twice-Seven, who brought meat, bread and heartening stories to their children, the seven maids and seven lads chosen to sail to Crete to be sacrificed to the Minotaur (a ritual confrontation of 14 "Beauties" with the Beast.).

The legend also explains the transvestite Oskhophoroi, for Theseus chose two boys with girlish features, and trained them to walk and act like girls so that they might substitute for two of the condemned girls to protect the others. In the festival they carry vine-branches and lead the procession, as they did in Theseus' triumph, in thanks to Dionysos and Ariadne. (Of course, such transvestitism is not unusual in the rituals of Greece or other cultures.) When the procession arrives at the sanctuary, there are songs, both happy and sad, and libations are poured to the God, followed by shouts of:
 
Eleleu! Iou! Iou!

The yell is paradoxical in that "Eleleu!" (pronounced "e-le-LOO!") is a cry of encouragement (from elelizo, to rally), whereas "Iou!" (pron. "yew!") is a cry of woe (Latin Heu!). This was explained by the mixed joy and grief of Theseus' return and his father's death, but it also celebrates the death and resurrection of Dionysos as Vegetation God.
 
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Theseia — 8th

The eighth of every month is sacred to Poseidon, so it is appropriate that His son, Theseus is honored on this day following the Pyanepsia and Oskophoria (as well as on the eighths of other months). There is a procession, sacrifices, athletic games (team torch-races and track and field events), and a feast at which meat is distributed to the people (celebrating Theseus as popular benefactor and democratic hero). The feast includes Athare (or Athera), a porridge of husked wheat and milk.
 
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Stenia — 9th

The Thesmophoria proper is preceded by two days (i.e. on 9 Pyanepsion) by the Stenia, a nocturnal women's festival for Demeter and Persephone in preparation for the Thesmophoria. The women engage in Aiskhrologia (foul language, abuse), hurling insults at one another to commemorate the way in which Iambe made the grieving Demeter laugh (see the Homeric Hymn to Demeter). This may also be when the Thesmoi (Things Laid Down) are placed into the caverns at the sanctuary of Demeter; they include dough models of snakes and male genitalia and pork from sacrificed piglets, all fertility symbols (pigs because of their fecundity); in this way the womb of The Mother is fertilized; they will be removed in the Thesmophoria proper. (Others say that the Thesmoi are deposited in the Skirophoria.)
 
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Thesmophoria — 11th-13th

The Thesmophoria is a celebration of Sporetos (Seed-time), the autumn sowing, dedicated to Demeter and restricted to women. (This is unusual in the Greek world for, although Gods often had Priests and Goddesses Priestesses, the festivals were usually open to both men and women. Although the ceremony is a women's mystery, this much may be said.
 
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1st Day: Anodos (Ascent) — 11th

During the Thesmophoria proper the women camp for three days in the Thesmophorion, the hillside sanctuary of Demeter Thesmophoros. Under the direction of two Arkhousai (Officials), the women set out in procession with the necessary supplies for three days and two nights, and set up their encampment, which takes the form of rows of shelters or huts with walkways between them. The women sleep on the ground, generally two to a hut.
 
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2nd Day: Nesteia (Fast) — 12th

On the second day the women sit on the ground and abstain from all solid food in humility and sympathy for Demeter's mourning (when she also refused a chair), but also to transfer their strength to the soil. As hunger begins to gnaw their stomachs, they again engage in Aiskhrologia (abusive language); some say, recalling Iambe and Demeter, that their taunts are spoken in iambic verse, the traditional meter of mockery. The women may also whip each other with a scourge made of morotton (woven bark). Aristophanes' Thesmophoriazysai contains two beautiful hymns typical of those sung on the day; they are too long to be reproduced here (ll. 969-1000 and 1136-1159; pp. 135-6 and 141-2 in the Barrett translation, Penguin Books, 1964).
 
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3rd Day: Kalligeneia (Fair Offspring) — 13th

Nightfall brings the official beginning of the third day, and there is a torch-light ceremony, for Demeter sought Persephone by torch light. Some say that this is when the Thesmoi are removed from the earth by Priestesses called Antletriai (Bailers), of whom three day's ritual purity (including sexual abstinence) is required. While women clap to scare away the sacred snakes that guard the caverns, the Antletriai go down into the caves, collect the Thesmoi in buckets, and place the putrefying matter on the altars of Demeter and Persephone. Later this "compost" is removed from the altars and mixed with the grain to be sown the following month (i.e., late Nov. to early Dec.). In this rite we truly see the role of the cycle of life and death in the fertilization of the Earth.

The fast is ended and the rest of the day is spent in joyous celebration of the gift of beautiful children, until the women break camp and return home.
 
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Apatyria — 3 or 4 consecutive days in Pyanepsion

Each Phratria (Clan) determines when its Apatyria (perhaps "Feast of the Common Fatherhood") will be held in the month of Pyanepsion.
 
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1st Day: Dorpia (Supper Eve)

This is a day of reunion and feast for the Phratria's members.
 
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2nd Day: Anarrhysis (Sacrificing)

Sacrifices are made to Zeus Phratrios and Athena Phratria, who oversee the Phratriai. Sometimes Dionysos is also included, which is explained by the myth of the fight between Melanthos, the Dark King, and Xanthos, the Fair King. Dionysos, by appearing behind Melanthos in a black goat's skin (Melainaigis), distracted him, and allowed Xanthos to cut him down. Hephaistos may also be honored.
 
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3rd Day: Koureotis (Youths)

On this day there is much celebration as new members are inducted into the Phratria; for many this will be done in the first Apatyria after they are born, though full induction takes place at puberty (when they might offer their cut hair to the Gods). A spouse can also be inducted after marrying a Phratria member. Thus membership is by birth, adulthood or marriage. In each case the parent or other sponsor is supposed to finance the inductee's sacrifice.
 
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4th Day: Epibda (Day Following)

Not a formal part of the festival, the "morning after" for recovering from the preceding revelries. (There is much drinking at the Apatyria.)
 
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Khalkeia — 29th

On this day the Ergastinai (Workers), comprising the priestess and the Arrhephoroi (see Arrhephoria), place wool on the loom for the woof of Athena's new peplos (robe), which will be woven for nine months and will be presented to Her in the Panathenaia. The decoration, like that of a tapestry, represents in bright colors, such as yellow and blue, the Gigantomachy, and especially Athena's defeat of Enkeladus.
 
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Maimakterion

Maimakteria — sometime in Maimakterion

The winter comes with the beginning of the month Maimakterion, so prayers are addressed to Zeus Maimaktes (Blustering) that He may be kind to people, crops and houses.
 
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Pompaia — sometime in Maimakterion

In a procession (pompaia) through the city, priests carry the Dion Kodion (Sacred Fleece), the skin of a sheep sacrificed to Zeus Meilikhios (Open to Propitiation, Kindly), a chthonic aspect of Zeus in which He appears as a snake and is especially protective of children. In the Pompaia a priest also carries the Kadykeus, the magic wand of Hermes with its entwined snakes. By this rite storms and other evil are driven out of the community, and the newly sown grain is protected. A polluted individual may likewise purify himself by standing with his left foot on the Fleece, which absorbs the pollution. Or one may sit barefoot on the fleece, with covered head, and be purified by a priest applying the Likhnon (Winnowing Fan). The Pompaia corresponds to the springtime Diasia for Zeus Meilikhios, such spring-fall pairing being common for Greek agricultural festivals.
 
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Poseideon

The winter solstice is 25 December in the ancient Roman astronomical calendar, but 21 December in the modern calendar. December is under the protection of Vesta, and the Greek month Poseideon (mid-Dec.-mid-Jan.) is under the protection of Poseidon.
 
This is a time of rest and celebration after the last sowing, and so agricultural deities, such as Saturn, Ops and Consus, are especially honored. Generally speaking, Graeco-Roman festivals of this season are more concerned with raising human spirits and reviving the crops than with the return of the sun.
 
Poseidea — 8th

The month of Poseideon was dedicated to Poseidon and the eighth day was especially sacred to him (as was the seventh to Apollo and the sixth to Artemis). (In general the summer months are assigned to Apollo and the winter months to other Gods, since that is when He is in Hyperborea and Dionysos takes His place at Delphi.) Poseidon's name seems to mean "Lord of the Earth" or "Husband of Earth," which reminds us of Saturn, husband of Rhea (Doric Poteidon = Potei-Dan = Lord of Earth, as his sometime wife Demeter = De-Meter = Ge-Meter = Earth-Mother).
 
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Country Dionysia — last half of Poseideon

This festival for Dionysos, which is called the Country Dionysia (ta Kat' Agrous Dionysia) or Small Dionysia (ta Mikra Dionysia), is not celebrated on any fixed date, but at a time determined by each village. Everyone participates (including, in ancient times, slaves), and in this regard it is like the Saturnalia.

According to Plutarch (3.527D), there is a procession comprising the carriers of a jar of wine and a vine, someone leading a he-goat, next the Kanephoros (Basket-bearer) carrying a basket of raisins, then the carriers of an erect, wooden phallus-pole, decorated with ivy and fillets, and finally the singer of the Phallikon (Phallic Song), which is addressed to "Phales" (see Aristophanes' Acharnians, 247ff, for a comic portrayal), although the procession may be more elaborate.

On Askolia, the second day of the festival, there is the Askoliasmos, a contest to see who can balance longest on top of a greased, inflated wine-skin (askos). Askoliazo may refer to standing on one leg, because there are many other one-legged contests at the festival (e.g., one-legged races, one-legged tag with the raised leg, one-legged hopping endurance). There may also be dramatic contests; indeed Aristotle claimed (Poet. 1449a) that comedy was born in the Country Dionysia.
 
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Haloa — 26th

Most likely the Haloa is a celebration of the pruning of the vines and the tasting of the wine after its first fermentation, or it may be to encourage the growth of corn from the seed. It is named after the halos (the circular threshing-floor) and is in honor of Demeter and Dionysos.

In the earliest times the first part of the festival was restricted to married women, but after the fourth century BCE to hetairai (courtesans). The Eleusinian Arkhontes (Magistrates) prepare a banquet comprising many foods, including phallus- and pudenda-shaped cakes, but not those foods forbidden in the Mysteries (pomegranates, apples, eggs, fowls, some fish).

The Arkhontes then leave, permitting the women to eat, to drink much wine, and to celebrate licentiously. Carrying clay models of phalli and pudenda, they dance on the halos around one or more giant phalli, and engage in ritual obscenity. The women may carry on their heads kernoi (offering dishes) containing incense, grains or other offerings. Offerings may be sprinkled on the phalli, around the bases of which are corn leaves. Some women, including the Priestesses, encourage the other women to take secret lovers.

Afterwards men are admitted and a joyful komos (revel) begins, which develops into an all-night orgy. A Priest and Priestess, with torches representing Demeter and Persephone, sit on chests and preside over the fertility celebration.
 
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Gamelion

Lenaia — 12th-15th

Though the festival is not well understood, it is probably to bring the spring and fertility. There may be a procession, during which the Daidykhos (Torch-bearer) says, "Invoke the God!" and the celebrants respond, "Son of Semele, Iakkhos, Giver of Wealth!" There are also contests of drama, song and poetry.

The Lenaia is most likely named for the Lenai, who are Maenads. At midnight, clothed and bearing the thyrsos, castanets, tambourines, flutes and torches, they begin an all-night ecstatic dance before a garlanded image of Dionysos. This idol is a simple post, dressed in a man's tunic, with garlanded branches like upraised arms, and with a bearded mask of Dionysos. Before it stands a table with two stamnoi (jugs) of wine and a kantharos (cup) between them; from the stamnoi the dancers dip the intoxicating wine.
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Gamelia — 26th

Gamelion was called the "Month of Marriage," and was a popular time for weddings. The Gamelia, at the end of the month, is a celebration of the Hieros Gamos (Sacred Marriage) of Zeus and Hera; it is considered a harbinger of spring and new beginnings. Few specifics are known, so use your intuition.
 
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Anthesterion

Lesser Mysteries of Eleusis — early Anthesterion

Initiation in the Lesser Mysteries is a prerequisite to initiation in the Greater (Eleusinian) Mysteries; they accomplish the preliminary purification of the Mystos (Initiate). These secret rites belong to Rhea, the Mother of the Gods, and the oldest of the Rhea-Demeter-Kore triad, but no more can be said about them.
 
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Anthesteria — 11th-13th

This is the "Festival of Flowers," when the first shoots of blossom appear, and is one of the oldest Greek festivals, dating back to the second millennium BCE; it was also called the Older Dionysia. At this time the vines are pruned again and the second fermentation of the wine is complete; it is now ready for drinking, and so this festival complements the Oskhophoria, which celebrates the vintage.
 
1st Day: Pithoigia (Jar-opening) — 11th

The first day celebrates the opening of the pithoi (jars) in which the wine has fermented. A pompe (procession) symbolizes the coming of Dionysos from the sea in a ship-chariot to His sanctuary; the God may be represented by an image or a masked man. The procession includes musicians and bearers of the ritual instruments, and other men, riding in the carts and perhaps masked as Satyrs, merrily hurl insults at bystanders.

The pithoi are also brought, and after they are broken open and the wine is mixed by the priestesses (i.e. diluted with water, as Dionysos taught the Greeks to drink it), a first-fruits offering is made to Him with a prayer that the wine be beneficial. Then the wine is tasted and there are songs and dances, in which He is celebrated as the Fair-Flowering, the Reveller, the Stormer, etc.
 
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2nd Day: Khoes (Pitcher Feast) — 12th

On this day all the temples of the gods are closed except the Limnaion, the temple of "Dionysos in the Marshes" (limnais, though there may be no marshes present), which is only open during this festival. Thus the underworld spirits are free to roam and join the feasts of the living. For protection people paint pitch on their doors and chew buckthorn in the morning; business is suspended and no oaths are sworn.

Also on this day it is customary that everyone at least three years old drinks wine. (Children are expected to participate because of their connection to fertility.) Everyone, including the children, has their own khoes (pitchers, 2-liter for adults) and drinking cups for wine, often purchased at the festival. The khous has a round body, short neck and trefoil mouth.

This is a very child-oriented festival, and a child's first Khoes is one of the major milestones of life: Birth, Khoes, Puberty and Marriage. He or she is crowned with flowers and might be given a khous, as well as other gifts, such as toys and pets; teachers often invite their pupils to a reception.

This is a day for drinking parties, both public and private. Distinguished people are invited by the high priest of Dionysos to a public drinking contest. A trumpet signals the start of the contest, during which no one may speak (for at this time people are cut off from one another as from all other gods but Dionysos). The victory goes to the first to empty his khous, who is awarded a full wineskin. Private contests are similar, but the prize is a cake.

Participants bring their own food, cups and khoes, already filled with mixed wine (from the Pithoigia); the host provides the garlands, perfume and dessert. After the contests, they put their garlands around their khoes and proceed to the Limnaion, where they give their garlands to the priestess. There they all thank Dionysos by pouring a libation for Dionysos of the last of the wine from their khoes.
 
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3rd Day: Khytroi (Pot Feasts) — 13th

Since the Greeks and Romans reckoned the day from sundown, the last day of the festival begins on the night of the Day of Pitchers. This is the night of the Hieros Gamos (Sacred Marriage) of Dionysos with the Basilenna (Queen), the wife of the Arkhon Basileus (Priest King); he must surrender his wife to Dionysos as Theseus, his distant predecessor, surrendered Ariadne to Him.

In the sacred precinct the Basilenna administers an oath of purity to the fourteen women, the Gerarai (Venerable Ones) of the Limnaion, who are appointed by her:
 
"I sanctify myself and am both pure and holy,
from all things which are not purifying
and especially from all intercourse with men,
and I shall act as Gerara ... in the ancestral fashion
and at all appropriate times."

They then conduct secret rites, which include making offerings at the fourteen altars and dancing before masks of Dionysos as at the Lenaia.

Another pompe (procession) brings the Holy Bride, who is identified with Ariadne, to her bridal chamber in the Boukoleon (perhaps the ancient house of the Arkhon Basileus). She is proceeded by a guide bearing two torches, who embodies Hermes Psychopompos (Spirit Guide); he wears the ependytes, a decorative tunic. A Satyr (perhaps masked) carries the tall dowry basket on his head or holds a sunshade over the Basilenna; one of the Gerarai bears a torch.

The actual rites of the Hieros Gamos are secret, but this much can be said. The Holy Bride waits on her bridal bed, while a Satyr acts as Thyroros (Doorkeeper) at the bridal chamber. Then, in secret but for an accompanying Satyr bearing His khous, Dionysos comes drunk to His bride for the consummation of their marriage, during which the revellers with their torches celebrate outside the bridal chamber. (It has been hypothesized that the Basilenna may sleep with a herm of Dionysos or with a masked person, perhaps the Arkhon Basileus or the high priest of Dionysos.)

After daybreak the Aiora (Swing) commemorates Erigone (Early-born), who hanged herself in grief when her father, who brought viticulture to Athens, was killed by drunken men. Girls swing on swings and boys jump on sacks filled with wine. By these actions and by hanging swaying masks and puppets in trees, the children transform the memory of a sad death into a symbol of joyous new life, purify the vintage of this tragedy (swinging is a traditional means of purification by Air) and banish the underworld spirits (see below).

Also on this day the Hydrophoria (Water-bearing) is celebrated: a procession of girls carrying hydriai (water jugs) on their heads go to a place where the water can be poured into a cubit-wide chasm in the earth; thus they commemorate their ancestors who died in the flood of Pyrrha and Deukalion, and celebrate the disappearance of the flood waters into the earth.

Finally, a meal is prepared for the dead (and for Hermes Psychopompos, their guide) by cooking various grains with honey in khytrai (earthen pots, after which this day is named). According to tradition, it was this meal, which is the most primitive cereal dish, that was eaten after the flood. Everyone shares this food except the priests (for the temples are closed).

At the close of the festival the underworld spirits are banished by saying:

 
Thyraze Keres, ouk eni Anthesteria!
"Begone, Keres (Death Spirits), the Anthesteria are finished!"

The ritual celebration of the flood, the swinging, and the banishing of the dead mark a resurrection, like that of Dionysos Himself.
 
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Diasia — 23rd

The Diasia (from Deus = Zeus) is the principal festival for Zeus Meilikhios (The Kindly), who is Zeus in chthonic aspect, manifesting as a giant snake. On this day everyone makes bloodless offerings (thymata epikhoria) to Him, typically cakes in the shape of animals such as sheep or pigs, but also grain and fruit because He is responsible for the fertility of the soil and is often shown with a cornucopia. Since this is a festival of propitiation, the entire offering is burnt for the God. After that there is general feasting and gifts may be given to children (who are especially dear to chthonic deities).
 
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Elaphebolion

Elaphebolia — 6th

This festival (and month) is named for Artemis Elaphebolos (Deer-shooting), that is, the Goddess as huntress; it is on the sixth day, which is always Hers. Now, as in ancient times, She is offered elaphoi (stags), which are stag-shaped cakes made from dough, honey and sesame-seeds.
 
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City Dionysia — 9th-13th

A principal characteristic of the City Dionysia, as opposed perhaps to the Rural Dionysia, is the presence of dramatic contests. On the first day, costumed choruses of men and boys sing dithyrambs (odes to Dionysos), on the second day there are comedies (such as Aristophanes'), and on the third to fifth days there are trilogies of tragedies (such as Aiskhylos's). Crowns and other prizes are awarded. The priest of Dionysos presides over the contests, and the image the God attends them; the officials in charge of administrative details are called khoregoi. Other honors may also be announced and awarded.

The sacred image of the God is a wooden stylos, or column, on which is affixed a terracotta mask of the bearded Dionysos. A procession called "Bringing in from the Sacrificial Hearth," which may include mounted Epheboi (youths), brings the image to His sanctuary and mimics the arrival of the God in the city. (The image is removed from the sanctuary and taken outside the city forthis purpose.)

On the following day is the main procession, the central feature of which is the Sacred Phallus, made of wood and carried on a tray (indeed, there may be several such phalli in the procession). A maiden of good birth is chosen as Kanephoros (Basket Carrier), and she bears the Kaneon, a golden basket filled with first-fruit offerings. Next come the Askophoroi (Bottle Carriers), citizens of the city bearing on their shoulders askoi (leather bottles) of wine to be offered as first fruits to the God; they may wear whatever they like. Others carry obeliai (spit-like things), phallus-shaped loaves of bread, on their shoulders. Likewise purple-robed Skaphephoroi (Tray Carriers) bear skaphia (trays) of offerings. In ancient times bulls were brought for sacrifice. The day ends with a Komos (Revel), a feast on beef and wine. At night, accompanied by flute and harp music, the people sing and dance through the streets.
 
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Mounykhion

Mounykhia — 16th

This festival honors Artemis as Moon Goddess and Lady of the Beasts. There is a procession in which the people carry Amphiphontes (Shining-all-round), round cakes in which dadia (little torches) are stuck, much like the cakes offered to Hekate; later these are offered to the Artemis with a prayer such as:
 
"Artemis, Dear Mistress, to Thee I carry, Lady, this Amphiphon, and what shall serve as drink offering."

Some say the reason the cake is called Amphiphon, which can also mean "Shining by Double Light," is that it is offered when the sun and moon are both visible.

In ancient times a she-goat was sacrificed to the Lady; now we may use cakes of that shape, or offer palm leaves, for the palm is sacred to Her.

This is also an appropriate time for the Arkteia (Playing the She-Bear) in thanks for game animals (the most important, for Neolithic tribes, being the bear). The Arktoi (She-Bears) are young girls (about ten years old) who dance naked or in short, saffron khitones (tunics); they wear leaf-crowns in their hair and carry torches or twigs.
 
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Thargelion

Thargelia — 7th

The Thargelia, which is probably identical to the ancient Thalysia (First-fruit Offering), is a harvest festival celebrated when the corn is threshed. Although in many cases the time varies from farm to farm, and coincides with the actual completion of the harvest (May or June), since it is a festival for Apollo (as a guardian of crops), it nominally occurs on the seventh day, His birthday. It has two parts, purification and offering.

The sixth day (the birthday of His sister, Artemis) is a day of purification, and two (preferably unattractive) men, the Pharmakoi (Scape-Goats), who have been fed by the people, are led around the city, and then driven away by fig-branches and (poisonous) squill-bulbs (used for purification). One Pharmakos wears a necklace of black figs, which represent the men of the city, and the other wears one of white figs, representing the women.

The following day is for a first-fruits offering to the God; the Thargelos is made by boiling corn and other vegetables in a pot. There are separate hymn singing contests for men's and boys' choirs; the winners receive a tripod, which they then dedicated to the God.
 
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Kallynteria — 22nd

This is a small festival, but an important one in Athens. Kallynteria is the festival of "Sweeping Out," and it is on this day that women sweep out the temple of Athena, and Her eternal flame is refilled and relit by the priestess.
 
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Plynteria — 25th

This is the festival for washing (plynteria hiera) the ancient statue of Athena Polias (Guardian of the City); bathing sacred images was a common custom in Greece and elsewhere. The day is considered unlucky (apophras) because the Goddess is absent from the city; it begins a rupture of the normal order, a void between the old year (which ends in a month) and the new.

Women remove the peplos (robe) and jewelry from the ancient image of Athena, which is then wrapped and carried in a procession to the washing place. The procession is led by a woman carrying a basket of fig pastries, for the fig is an ancient fertility symbol and was the first cultivated food; the sweetmeats may be offered to the Goddess at the shore. Mounted Epheboi (young men) may also accompany the (veiled) image. It is brought to the shore (for it should be purified in running water, especially salt water), where it is bathed by two girls, the Loutrides (Bathers); the peplos may be cleaned at the same time (perhaps by a priest). That evening the Goddess is returned to the temple in a torchlight procession and is clothed with the clean peplos and adorned with Her jewels. Only the Loutrides and the women who dress and undress the Goddess are permitted to see Her naked.

The ancient statue was of human size or less, carved of olive wood, and probably showed the Goddess seated without weapons. She wore a tall, golden stephane (crown) and She may have had a Gorgoneion (Medusa head) on her breast.
 
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Skirophorion

Arrephoria — 5th

Two young girls (perhaps seven years old), the Arrephoroi (perhaps "Carriers of Unspoken Things") who are the ritual daughters of the Arkhon Basileus (Priest-King), have spent the preceding year living by the temple of Athena Polias. Some say they have been weaving a new peplos (robe) for Athena, which they will bring to Her in the sacred procession (see Panathenaia).

In a secret nocturnal rite, the Priestess gives the Arrephoroi a package, the contents of which are hidden from all three. They take the package by a secret path to the sanctuary of Aphrodite in the Gardens, and bring back another secret package. Thereafter the Arrephoroi are replaced by two new girls. This rite recalls when Athena gave the casket containing Erikhthonios to the daughters of King Kekrops, who acted as nurses. Two of them disobeyed Her order not to look in the casket, and when they saw the serpent-man they jumped to their deaths from the Acropolis. The name of the faithful nurse was Pandrosos (All-dew), or, according to others, the two self-sacrificing daughters were Pandrosos and Herse (which also means Dew). (The festival's name might also be spelled Ersephoria - Dew Carrying.) The olive tree, which was Athena's special gift to Athens, bears small olives if there is not sufficient dew at this time of year. Aphrodite, as Goddess of the Morning and Evening Star, was responsible for the dew, and so Her cooperation was essential.

The Arrephoroi wear white robes and eat Anastatos (Made-to-rise), a special light bread.
 
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Skirophoria — 12th

The Skirophoria (also known as the Skira) occurs at the time of the cutting and threshing of the grain. The Priestess of Athena, the Priest of Poseidon and the Priest of Helios go to the Skiron, a place sacred to Demeter, Kore, Athena Skiras and Poseidon Pater, for here Athens and Eleusis were reconciled. Athena and Poseidon represent city life, and Demeter and Kore represent agriculture; Helios witnesses Their oaths (as He witnessed the abduction of Kore). The Skiron is where, according to tradition, the first sowing took place. A large, white canopy (called the skiron) is carried over the priests' and priestesses' heads during the procession.

The Skirophoria is celebrated mainly by women (as men dominate the City Dionysia). To bring fertility, they abstain from intercourse on this day, and to this end they eat garlic to keep the men away. They also throw offerings into the megara - sacred caves of Demeter: cakes shaped like snakes, phalluses and sucking pigs. (These become the Thesmoi - things laid down - that are removed in the Thesmophoria) This ceremony recalls the swineherd Eubouleus who was swallowed up with his pigs when Persephone was abducted into the underworld by Hades.

The men have a race in which they carry vine-branches from the sanctuary of Dionysos to the temple of Athena Skiras. The winner is given the Pentaploa (Fivefold Cup), containing wine, honey, cheese, some corn and olive oil. He alone is allowed to share this drink with the Goddess, to whom a libation is poured so that She will bless these fruits of the season.
 
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Hekatombaion

The heat of the summer is past its peak and the harvest is nearing completion. This is the month of Hekatombaion (nominally mid-July to mid-August), which began the Athenian year. (Although other parts of Greece began their year at different times - this calendar follows the Lakonian practice of beginning at approximately the Autumn Equinox with the month Boedromion.)
 
Aphrodisia — 4th

This is the bathing festival of Aphrodite Pandemos (Aphrodite of All Peoples) and Peitho (Persuasion), Her helper, who have been considered powerful goddesses since the archaic period; like Ishtar They are goddesses of war and statecraft as well as love.

First the temple is purified (in ancient times with the blood of a dove, Aphrodite's bird) and the altar is anointed. Nowadays we might dedicate an unblemished rose to Her and anoint the altar with pure rose oil. (Apples, apple blossoms and myrtle sprays are also appropriate.) Finally the sacred images are carried in a procession to a place where they are washed (see the Plynteria for a discussion of washing festivals). (Note that the fourth day of
every month is sacred to Aphrodite.)
 
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Kronia — 12th

The Kronia is a festival in honor of Kronos as a god of the grain harvest, who is depicted with a reaping hook; on this day a harvest supper celebrates the final end of the harvest. More broadly it is (like the Saturnalia) a celebration of the Golden Age ruled by Kronos and Rhea, when there was no labor or oppression. Since this was before Zeus brought order to the world, the Kronia is a chaotic festival. In ancient times, slaves were allowed to run riot in the streets, and were invited to sumptuous banquets by their masters. During the Kronia we are allowed a temporary return to the Golden Age, to equality, luxury, ease and unconstrained freedom.
 
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Panathenaia — 28th

The Panathenaia is, in effect, the celebration of Athena's birthday, for according to tradition 28 Hekatombion was the day She burst from Zeus's head (depicted on the east pediment of the Parthenon). Though it is Her day, all the Olympians attend the festivities (as we see in the east frieze), for They were also all present at Her birth. This is a sacred feast at which gods and mortals celebrate Athena's birthday together.

The day before the Panathenaic procession is a festival called Pannykhis (All-night Vigil - a common feature of Greek festivals, since they begin at sunset, like Roman festivals). At sunrise the sacred fire is fetched from the altar of Eros in the Academy, where a sacrifice was made to Eros and Athena. (An altar to Prometheus, who brought fire to mortals, was also in the Academy.) A torch race brings the fire to the altar of Athena.

Every fourth year the Greater Panathenaia is held, for which a new peplos (robe) is woven for the Goddess (Her birthday present). Its middle stripe of panels display the Gigantomachy, the battle of the Giants and the Olympians (depicted in the east metopes of the Parthenon), which symbolizes the triumph of civilization over savagery. The procession brings the peplos through the city, hung like a sail on the mast of a wheeled ship, which is steered by priests and priestesses adorned with colorful garlands; mounted Epheboi (young men) may accompany the procession. The ship is left at the entrance of the sacred precincts and the i is carried the rest of the way by itself or on the mast alone.

At the head of the Panathenaic procession are the Kanephoroi, the gold-bedecked girls who carry the Kana, the holy offering baskets, which they give to the marshals at the altar. The Kana contain the barley that is thrown over the sacrifice and covers the sacrificial implements in the Kana. (See "Neoclassical Celebratory Sacrifice" in The Lyre #3 for more detail.) Next come the Ergastinai (Workers), who wove the new peplos, and other girls bring bowls, jugs, incense burners and additional ritual implements.

In ancient times the procession split into two lines. The north line brought a cow for Athena Polias, the Bronze Age city guardian, and a ewe for Pandrosos (one of the daughters of Kekrops). They were sacrificed at the altar in the "Old Temple," which the Goddesses shared, and the roasted meat was eaten by the priests and officials. This indoor rite is older than the outdoor sacrifice, which was the destination of the south line, which brought cattle to Athena Parthenos, the patron of democracy, at the "Big Altar" outside the Parthenon, where the roasted meat was given to the public.

In the more sacred northern procession the victor(s) of the torch race (one victor in the Lesser Panathenaia, all four in the Greater) may bring water to the sacrifice in the hydria (water jugs) they won in the races; they serve as Hydriaphoroi (Water Bearers). They are followed by musicians, such as lyre players (Kitharodoi) and flutists (Auletes), since music usually accompanies sacrifices. The musicians are elegantly dressed, for example, in a sleeved khiton (tunic), a peplos (robe) and a himation (mantle), as we see on the north frieze of the Parthenon (slabs VII and VIII).

In both lines there are Skaphephoroi (Tray Bearers), purple-gowned young men who carry bronze or silver trays of cakes and honeycombs on their shoulders. (They followed the torch victors in the northern procession and the cattle in the southern procession.) After the Tray Bearers in the procession come the Thallophoroi (Sprig Bearers), good-looking Elders who carry sprigs of the sacred olive trees, and the other celebrants. Non-Hellenes carry oak branches. The number Four organizes the procession: four Hydriaphoroi, four Kitharodoi, four Auletes, four ewes and four cows.

The peplos is dismounted from the mast, if necessary, and folded by a young boy or girl and a priest (the Arkhon Basileus), who will give it to the priestess of Athena Polias. The girl may be one of the Arrhephoroi (see the Arrephoria), who are the ritual daughters of the Arkhon; the boy, who is his ritual son, may be the lad charged with feeding the Holy Snake. They correspond to the three daughters and the son of Kekrops, the serpent-man who was the first king of Athens and a great benefactor of the people.

Children assist in many other ways; some carry accerai (Lat., incense boxes) to fill the thymiateria (incense burners). They also carry small, sacred tables and chairs, which are set up to entertain the chthonic goddesses allied with Athena: Pandrosos (All Bedewed) and Ge Kourotrophos (Nursing Mother Earth, a patron of nurses). Ge Kourotrophos has the bigger chair, since She is more important than Pandrosos, for Ge receives the prothyma (first offering) at all Athenian sacrifices, perhaps barley from the Kanoun (holy basket) or the honey cakes born by the Tray Carriers (both typical offerings to chthonic deities). The city is especially thankful to Her for beautiful children and young women, who walk together in the procession. The thirtieth Homeric Hymn thanks Mother Earth for "well-ordered states with women fair," where
 
their sons exult with youthful merriment;
their daughters play in dances flower-strewn
with happy heart, and skip through fields abloom.
Such givest Thou, Holy Rich Divinity.

Notice that, like the sacrificial victims, which must be blemish-free, good-looking and distinguished people (hoi kaloi k'agathoi) are prominent in the procession - the Goddess is honored with the best the city has to offer.

The new peplos is placed on Athena's knees as a gift, and is later stored in the treasury; She is not rerobed at this time, which was done in the Plynteria. Sacrifices are also made for Athena Hygieia (Goddess of Health) and Nike (Victory).

In the Greater Panathenaia, the three or four days following the procession are occupied by Agones (contests) of sport (races, boxing and wrestling) and art (music, poetry). Traditionally the prize for athletes is a "Panathenaic amphora" containing olive oil from the Goddess's sacred grove, and the prize for artists is a gilded crown of wild olives and sometimes money. There may be contests for children, for which they are awarded plain crowns of olive.

Ten officials called Hieropoioi (Managers of the Rites) organized the Lesser Panathenaia; the ten Agonothetai (Contest Directors) managed the Greater.
 
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Metageitnion

Metageitnia — 7th

This is a small festival in honour of Apollo in His capacity as bringer of harmony. It is a celebration of good relations with neighbours.
 
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Last modified: September 28, 1998
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