Panathenaia
The Panathenaia ( Greek Παναθήναια Panathēnaia ) were the largest religious and political festival in ancient Athens , which was celebrated in honor of Athena , the patron goddess of Athens.
history
The mythical King Erechtheus is said to have founded the Athenians; Theseus turned, after the Attic spots connected to a shared city, the festival in Panathenaic ( "feast for the Athenians"). Under the archon Hippokleides , six years before Peisistratos , foreign states also took part, and the festival was generally brighter.
The panathenaia were divided into large and small; these were celebrated annually, those every fourth year, each in the third year of the Olympics . The festivities extended from the 25th to the 28th of the month of Hekatombaon ; the last day was the brightest. They consisted partly of sacrifices, acts and scenes, partly of competitions, namely in gymnastic (since 566 BC ) and musical agons (since Pericles ). The festival began with the latter; they took place in the Odeon .
For all competitions ten judges ( agonothetes or athletes ) were chosen from the ten phyls . The competitive prizes consisted of a wreath made of branches of the consecrated olive tree and at the same time in large and luxurious earthen vessels, the so-called Panathenaic price amphoras , which were filled with holy oil.
The high point of the whole festival was the solemn procession of the entire Athenian citizenship (men, women, youths and virgins), including the protective relatives ( Metoks ), and the great festival offering with a common meal. The most splendid show piece in the procession was the richly embroidered saffron-colored upper garment of Athena, which was woven anew by the Attic women for each celebration and was moved on the so-called Panathenaic ship, a movable machine in the shape of a ship. The festive offering concluded the ceremony and consisted of a hecatomb .
During the Panathenaic Mountains in 514 BC . BC was the tyrant Hippias and Hipparchus of Harmodios and Aristogeiton made an attempt, which is partly failed, but many still considered the birth of democracy was considered - although, according to Thucydides falsely as purely personal motives could have been behind the attack.
literature
- Haritini Kotsidu : The musical agon of the Panathenaic in archaic and classical times. A historical-archaeological investigation (= sources and research on the ancient world. Vol. 8). Tuduv, Munich 1991, ISBN 3-88073-418-6 (also: Frankfurt am Main, University, dissertation, 1990).
- Hermann Alexander Müller: Panathenaica. Koenig et van Borcharen, Bonn 1837, digitized .
- August Mommsen : Heortology. Antiquarian studies of the urban festivals of the Athenians. Teubner, Leipzig 1864, digitized .
- Adolf Michaelis (Ed.): The Parthenon. With a text booklet. Breitkopf and Härtel, Leipzig 1870–1871, digitized , digitized text booklet .
- Jenifer Neils: Goddess and polis. The Panathenaic Festival in ancient Athens. Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ 1992, ISBN 0-691-00223-1 .
- Jenifer Neils (Ed.): Worshiping Athena. Panathenaia and Parthenon. University of Wisconsin Press, Madison WI et al. 1996, ISBN 0-299-15110-7 .