Snapshots of women at the Athenian feast

Smith, A. C. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0224-428X (2026) Snapshots of women at the Athenian feast. In: Morgan, C., Charalambidou, X. and Crielaard, J. P. (eds.) Feasting with the Greeks: Towards a Social Archaeology of Ritual Consumption in the Greek World. University of Amsterdam Press, Amsterdam. (In Press)

Abstract/Summary

This chapter analyses the evidence provided by Athenian figure-decorated pottery for female participation in all aspects of the feast: sacrifice, libation, bread and meat preparation, and commensality. Aligning this evidence with epigraphic and other textual sources, e.g. comic references, it rejects the stereotype of all-female festivals held in the dark of night and rather asserts participation in feasting, in the context of festivals, as a fundamental aspect of female ritual participation in ancient Athens. Communal feasting therefore highlights the essential role women played as mediators between oikos and polis. It analyses also how and why the evidence, particularly on late black-figure decorated vases from the late Archaic to Classical periods, has been hitherto overlooked or misunderstood.

Item Type	Book or Report Section
URI	https://centaur.reading.ac.uk/id/eprint/120429
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Arts, Humanities and Social Science > School of Humanities > Classics > Ure Museum Arts, Humanities and Social Science > School of Humanities > Classics
Publisher	University of Amsterdam Press
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