The banquets of the ancient Greeks: An alibi for crap or maybe something more?

Why women were forbidden, unless they were dancers or partners - Ritual and social significance

000 oj9j72li 1312x819 1 Ancient Greece, symposium

It is no secret that our ancient ancestors constantly found pretexts for celebration.

On every occasion and in every occasion, they ended up in riots, dances and wine races.

Whether they were celebrating the arrival of a baby, the arrival of a loved one or a wedding, it was a fun-loving society.

We call them social or secular events today and for them ancient Greeks it was literally bread and cheese.

A salt and pepper of life that came to not even need a specific purpose. It was just enough for some to party until morning.

Only these gatherings should not be confused with banquets. The banquet was not another party, in the current sense of the word, nor a simple gathering among friends.

But a very important aspect of the daily life of the Greeks, which seemed very much, is the truth with a feast without tomorrow.

Because yes, men gathered in houses to eat, drink and have fun, but there were others that took place in the famous banquets of the ancients…

The social significance of the banquet

shutterstock 664286932 Ancient Greece, symposium

Today's historians trace the importance of the social role of the symposium from the fact that it is mentioned in at least two important works of the ancient Greek literature: the "Symposium" of Plato and Xenophon's "Symposium".

Famous banquets praise even great poems, such as the elegies written by Theognis Megareus. Although the play is undoubtedly stolen by the Platonic text, another Socratic dialogue of the great philosopher.

Written between 385-370 BC, the "Symposium" is a study of love, as discussed by a group of symposium writers, including Socrates and Alcibiades.

The symposium was organized by the young tragic poet and his student Socrates, Agathon, and what concerns the hostess that night is the nature of love.

Leaving aside the philosophical extensions of this boulder of ancient Greek literature, the Socratic dialogue has yielded many elements of the how and why of a banquet.

It also bears the stamp of Plato, a reliable source for modern historical research, so that we can understand the place and role of the symposium for the society that gave birth to it.

The symposium was therefore a social institution for Athens of the Classical Period. Without formal institutionalization, of course, it functioned as an informal philosophical conference. With wine, dance and carnal pleasures, always…

What was going on at a banquet

Ancient Greece, banquet

Only adult citizens from the upper strata of society took part in the symposium. The only women who could participate were partners, this special kind of prostitute that flourished in ancient Greece, which in addition to physical beauty, was also distinguished for its spirituality.

These elegant prostitutes with erudition and education offered music and dance services when this was in demand. The virtuous Athenians did not participate in banquets.

The women we see in scenes from banquets adorning clay pots are exclusively partners, who had the role of entertainer. Talented in music and dance, they could make spirited interventions in men's conversations.

Sometimes, as it is handed down to us, they also functioned as sexual companions of the banqueters. The pleasure they offered was multifaceted.

The fact that only men participated is partly explained by the type of discussions that took place. In other words, either the conversation was purely philosophical, therefore incomprehensible to the ears of the Athenian housewife, or it was purely "masculine", that is, unsuitable for husband.

Each guest at a banquet participated equally in the conversation. That is why a banquet usually included 7-15 men. They gathered at a private house, after an explicit invitation, and everyone had the same place.

That is why the benches on which the symposiumeers lay, always resting on their left elbow, were placed in a circle, so that no one is in the center of attention.

ngmp63be Ancient Greece, symposium

The archeological dig has brought to light rooms of houses that were specially designed for banquets. We even have performances with aristocratic scenes and ornate couches, where men drink their wine, talk, make jokes and play kottavo, enjoying music and reciting poems.

The symposium, as the term says (συν + πίνειν), was oriented towards wine drinking and overnight discussion. The food was optional. The host could serve food, but that was not what he wanted.

According to sources, sometimes the banqueters brought their own food, if they were informed that no dinner would be served. Even if food was offered, it was not a snack, but a simple meal.

The low tables next to the couches were cleaned immediately after the end, so that the company could move on to the purpose of the night: wine tasting.

Homer assures us that sometimes, in less aristocratic banquets, the participants contributed either financially or with food. The poet calls them "Fundraisers", they later called them "contributions".

It is known that the Greeks did not take a sip of their food. First they filled the stomach and then they went on to drink wine. Of course, this does not mean that they drank it sparingly wine their. We know that they accompanied it with snacks, the "tragimata", roasted chestnuts, sweets made of honey, broad beans, such things.

The banquet usually started at dusk, although for the host it took days to prepare. He had to choose the wine, book musicians, acrobats and partners and arrange every detail.

No one left completely sober

shutterstock 1356885872 Ancient Greece, symposium

The banquet itself, that is, the wine tasting, that is, began with a pound, usually in Dionysus. The symposium leader, the master of ceremonies, we would say of the gathering, was the man in charge of an equally important role: not to make the attendees drunk.

Not all together at least! Because a room full of drunk men, you never knew where it would end up. And whatever happened would bring bad news to the host. On the other hand, of course, it was also not good for someone to leave completely sober. Something had not gone well.

The symposium had its ritual and the Athenians they went to great lengths to maintain fragile balances. There was even a golden rule for how good a banquet could go.

As the Athenian poet of the classical era, Evvoulos, assures us, a good host prepared three craters for each guest: the first for health, the second for love and pleasure and the third for sleep.

After the third, he tells us, the wise men returned home. The fourth crater was no longer the responsibility of the host. It belonged to the bad behavior. The fifth was for the voices.

The sixth for insults and rudeness. The seventh for the fights. The eighth for breaking furniture. The ninth for melancholy. And the tenth belonged entirely to madness.

The good banquet leader determined from the beginning how much wine would be served, but also its alcohol content. The Greeks drank their wine watery. "Barbarians" were typically called by the Athenians those who drank plain wine. They mixed wine and water in the crater, a large vessel made especially for this purpose.

l4uowsih Ancient Greece, banquet

The right ratio of wine and water varied, however the most prudent dilution was given by the ratio 1: 3. Watered wine may sound like a small thing today, but a crater could hold up to 60 liters of wine.

In fact, they gave great concern to the crater of the banquet. The Athenian citizens had the potters make complete rows of vases specially designed for use at the banquet.

In addition to the crater, the wine was transported to the room and into an amphora. The richest had these pottery decorated with elaborate representations. The water they brought it to a jug. The servant dipped the wine glass in the crater with the watered wine and filled the cups of the attendants.

The specially designed wine glass was the goblet, a shallow vessel with two horizontal handles so that the half-lying companion could hold it from his couch.

It was also the responsibility of the master of ceremonies for everyone to drink at the same rate, ensuring that no one would get drunk faster than his neighbor.

The banquet undoubtedly ended in drunkenness, but that was not his goal. They did not gather to get drunk, but to communicate, to socialize, to philosophize.

And if they eventually become a "gnat", this was definitely a by-product of the night. After all, you had to get there slowly, always in a civilized way.

Wine and philosophy

shutterstock 684511591 Ancient Greece, symposium

The banquet was not a gathering of friends. But a gathering of friends on purpose. The wine broke the resistance, so that the citizens came closer, forging even bigger ties. Or creating new ones.

As we know, no one sat down to drink and just listen to others. Even when the others were Socrates. Each symposium had to participate and even participate equally.

As you drank the same amount of wine as the others, so you spoke, equally. Each in turn. Having a corresponding time to unfold his thought. Even if you were just telling a song or a story. Or an enigma.

In the most successful banquets, such as the Platonic one, everyone talks about the same subject. Plato tells us that that night the company was occupied with love. Other times it was policy.

f4bkfdni Ancient Greece, symposium

Xenophon assures that the banquet was the best way to conclude political alliances. Or to marry your child well. Or find a partner for your business.

The banquet did not even have to be luxurious and expensive. THE aristocracy drank in gold cups, however it did not matter if the cup was made of gold or clay. The purpose was to drink and philosophize with friends.

This is how the ancient Greeks saw fun, wine-drinking with company and conversation. A conversation that could take you out of the banquet even an better person. If you had invited Socrates, for sure.

But companionship always had the first say. It is known that the Athenians saw with half an eye those who stung them alone…

Source