lesson 1- levels of worship Flashcards
what does oikos mean?
household
what is a deme?
a local community/ local division of the city state e.g Hitchin
what is a polis?
a city state e.g Hertfordshire
what is panhellenic?
all over Greece
what is personal worship?
personal worship that would be done by an individual or family in their home
what is localised worship?
worship that would be done as a small, localised community such as a tribe or city
what is panhellenic worship?
worship that would be done over the whole of Greece
what was Zeus ktesios?
Protector of property and wealth
how is zeus ktesios typically depicted?
By a two handled vase draped in white woollen ribbon filled with seeds, water and olive oil
where would a depiction of Zeus ktesios typically be kept?
In the storeroom
who would pray to Zeus ktesios?
the father of the family- who would pray to him for wealth and good property
what is zeus herkeois?
zeus of the fence who protected the enclosure of the house
what is zeus herkeois depicted as?
with a snake- this snake would ward off evil
where would the depiction of Zeus Herkeois usually be kept?
in the courtyard of the home, which the whole house was centered around
what is apollo agyeios?
protector of the outside of the home
how is apollo agyeios depicted?
by a small statuette, a small pillar or statue of heracles
where would the apollo agyeios depiction be found?
outside the home
what was a herm?
a rectangular pillar with a bearded head of Hermes at the top and erect phallus further down the pillar
what were herms used as?
hallway markers and protective symbols outside houses
what was the hearth?
The fire of the home which was dedicated to Hestia
how were new family members such as wives, slaves and babies incorporated into the family home?
through a small ceremony which involved walking around the fire whilst being showered with dried fruits and nuts
how would the hearth be worshipped?
By keeping the fire alive
what were the duties of the father in the oikos?
-tend to the household religious cults
-tending to family tombs (both in appearance and the rituals to honour the dead)
-offer libations of milk and and honey and offerings of garlands at the gravesite once a year in the name of the deceased
-welcoming their son into their phratry (brotherhood) during a three day festival in honour of zeus phratrios
what were the duties of women in religious participation?
-their main participation was as priestesses for state cults or in communal civil cults
what was arrephoros?
A secret ritual which was performed in may associated with Athena polias. The arrephoroi were two maidens which were chosen each year and had to carry baskets on their heads , given to them by Athena, but neither of them knew what was in the basket. They would take it from nearby the temple of athena on the acropolis then through an underground passage to the sanctuary of aphrodite, where they would get something in return.
what were grinders?
Girls that would ground the meal for the cakes that would offered to athena on her alter
what was the brauronia?
There was a sanctuary of artemis at Brauron. Girls would dress up as bears at the festival of brauronia- this was a required festival before a girl was allowed to marry
what was a basket bearer?
Might refer to the baskets that held sacrificial elements on occasions such as the panathenaic procession.
what were women allowed to do once they were married?
They could take part in festivals such as the Thesmophoria ( a woman only festival in honour of demeter and persephone) or the eleusinian mysteries.
what rites did women have to perform?
They would have to perform rites when someone had died by tending to the corpse.
how many residents are estimated to have lived in the deme of erchia?
3,000-2,000 people 500 of which were male
what piece of evidence dated from the 4th century BC gives us an insight into their deme religious participation?
their sacrificial calendar, which told us what sacrifices were happening weekly, monthly and yearly, whether the sacrifice would be dedicated to a god or a hero, and what animal would be sacrificed.
how many sacrifices did the deme of erchia have a year?
5
how many animals were sacrificed yearly at the deme of erchia?
59 animals yearly
who paid for the erchia sacrifices?
wealthy demesmen- the sacrifices could get very costly especially due to the amount of animals which were killed yearly
what are the 6 variants of apollo which are mentioned in sources from erchia?
Apotropaios (averter of evil)
Delphinios (of delphi)
Lykeios (of wolves)
Nymphegetes (leader of the nymphs)
Paion (healer)
Pythios (the pythian- again referring to delphi)
what were the 3 local heroes that were worshipped in erchia?
Heroes Epops, leucaspis and menedeius.
what did erchia priests also have to do?
represent the deme at festivals that took place in athens- we know this is true because we have evidence that erchia offered sacrifices to Athene polias at the acropolis
Why did the deme of Erchia particularly worship Demeter at a festival such as Proerosia?
Because Erchia was in the countryside, they would worship demeter, goddess of fertility and agriculture. ‘Proerosia’ meaning ‘pre-ploughing festival’.
who could participate in polis religious participation?
everyone apart from women, slaves and non citizens
Who paid for and organised Polis wide religious participation?
paid for by state funds and organised by state officials- the city funded temples, sacrifices, festivals and dedications
what were the purposes for polis religious participation beyond just honouring the gods?
It was also to draw the community together and create a sense of patriotism and civic pride
who was worshipped at the delphi panhellenic sanctuary?
pythian apollo (meaning the apollo that slew the pytho- a mythical snake)
what panhellenic games were held at the delphi sanctuary?
the pythian games
what god was worshipped at the olympia panhellenic sanctuary?
olympian zeus (meaning zeus of olympus)
what panhellenic games were held at the olympia sanctuary?
the olympian games
what god was worshipped at the nemea panhellenic sanctuary?
nemean zeus (meaning zeus of the nemea)
what panhellenic games were held at the nemea sanctuary?
the nemean games
what god was worshipped at the isthmia panhellenic sanctuary?
isthmian poseidon (meaning poseidon of isthmus)
what panhellenic games were held at the isthmus sanctuary?
the ishmian games
who was the head of the house?
the head of the house was always the oldest male figure, most typically the father. He had complete religious authority and acted as a ‘priest’ and overseer of household rituals, making offerings to the three household gods daily: Zeus Ktesios, Zeus Herkeios and Apollo Agyeios
what were women in the household responsible for in relation to the deceased?
Women were responsible for performing the appropriate rites upon someone’s death by tending to the corpse and preparing the body for prothesis, which was a period of two days during which people would visit the home to pay their respects
who were female priesthoods most commonly open for?
younger girls who came from the upper class
there are four priesthoods for women in Athens, what are they?
- Arrephoros
- Grinder
- Brauronia
- Basket-bearer
what were the main cults that women participated in outside of the Oikos and for what purpose?
The main cults that women participated in outside of the home were mainly to Artemis, Asclepius and Demeter, as these were major gods associated with childbirth
what was the Amphidromia?
A ceremonial feast celebrated on the fifth or seventh day after the birth of a child. The house was decorated, with friends and relatives being invited to witness the child receive their name
