A S TU D Y O F

WO ME N

IN A TTI C INS CRIPTIO NS

BY

HELEN M c C LEES , FE D

39m

9
1

C O LUMBI A U NI V E RS I TY PRESS
1920
A ll

ri ghts reserved

w;

By Cow m an Dum

Printed fl a n typo April

.

Pu

1920

ss

S TU DY O F

WO ME N

IN

A TTIC IN SO RIP TIO N S

I N TRO DU CTI O N

makin g this study m y object has been to collect all the

information upon the life and position of women to be found
in the Attic inscriptions With this purpose in min d I have
tried to examin e all published inscriptions which relate directly
or indire ctly to women individually or collectively
A careful read ing of them has not brough t to ligh t any fact
contrary to our kn owledge of the mann er of life or position in
society of Ath enian women derived from literary and artistic
sources ;
but from them we gain conrmation and copious
illustration of kn owledge acquired by other means as well as
a vivid picture composed of accumulated details of the every
day occupations of women at home and abroad of their reli
gion an d superstitions their fam ily relationships and public
honors
And although not many new facts have bee n added to our
kn owledge by the inscriptions they eect a decided change
in the view whi ch i s given by Greek literature alone We recall
Pericles speech after the rst year of th e Peloponnesi an war
a speech full of the deepest feelin g for youth for the loss i n
i cted upon the state and upon the fam ily but harsh even to
a shocking degree toward the bereaved mothers and wives
yet in Pericles because of his association with
of the dead ;
Aspasia a diff erent attitude might well have been expected
The Oeconomicus of Xenophon shows us in some detail the
life of a youn g married woman of the upper classes a picture
which was intended to be cheerful but which reveals little
IN

appre ciati on

equals

her

be

of

rea l natm e

was m uch
to

m re

na

wo m

the physi m l

i nto his idea l

and of the
of

or

state ,

sm

and

tal needs of

n
t
r
a
s
t
r
e
n
t
s
a
co
es
p

n
u
o
y
g,

to the idm s

of

he proved that hi s knowledge

and m ost valuable qm li ties was slight , o r

obecure d

her

childre n

by his i nte res t i n his theory

turally inferior and love

for her to

of

the

sta te

be a lower ord er of

alle d the best and wises t of hi s time Plato did not consider
it in compatible with that judgment to show So crates beha vin g
to ward his wife in a manner quite contrary to what seems to
l
us either good or wise
l - r p ti ons
r
The iT
on
the
othe
hand
how
t
hat
in
p
a
c
ti
ce
r
s
i i
as much to render the lot of Athenian women com
there w
i
l
t
a
r
a
v
e
a
n
d
u
nal
n
o
p
y happy
To begin at the end of life the sepulchral i nscriptions whi c h
are by far the most numerous and are common to every class
in the comm unity are full of an appreciation of the characte r
of women and their contribution to hum a n society which has
not often bee n exceeded in la ter times and the sepulchral
reliefs which have come down to us p roduce the same im
pression
Again the dedications make it pla in that while the legal
position of women in regard to property was unj us t and haras
sing i t must have been grea tly mitigated in p ractice for la rge
numbers of women were able to m ake gifts varying in value
from a rude relief or a few coins in a cloth or small di sh to
val uable ornaments and artistic objects as well as contributions
in money for public monuments
For a di fferent view see B urnet Phaedo note s p 60
c

"

A STUDY

or

WOME N

IN

ATTIC

IN SCRIPTIONS

VReli gi ous life , however , offered the most considerable

oppor

usefulness and activity beyond duties toward the

family and while the state re ligion of Greece did not requi re
or p romote depth of thought i ts service must have e nabled
intelli gent women to employ their powers in following out
O bse rvances in arrangi ng the festivals and often in managi ng
the practical detai ls and expenditures of a cult For we must
r emembe r I thi nk
that at least i n the extraordinary society
of the fth and fourth centuries from which so much of all that
we value most has come down to us there must have bee n
women who i nherited the q uali ties of their fathers and in
natural gi fts even though they were untrai ned were not far
behind their brothers and hus bands There were undoubtedly
women of shrewdness and wit some who possessed ability
to persuade some even who could have used their reasoning
faculties if that had been regarded as a woman s function
and certainly some of them possessed a sense of form and
measure and neness of taste in that society of lovers of the
beautiful The daughter of some humble vase pai nter per
haps whose work we now regard with admiration migh t well
have inherited the qualities which made him group his gures
so charmin gly and draw his outlin es with such delicate per
fecti on even though she mus t manifest them only in the
sophrosyne with which she lived in her father s household
This taste and intelli gence with natural womanly devotion
could be offe red to the service of the gods which was also
the service of the state
O pportuni ties for publi c of ce and publi c honors increased
greatly under the Roman rule and at thi s time the position of
women in the family must have become more important for
now the name of the mothe r as well as that of the father is
The numbe r of honorary
found on grave monuments of men
in scriptions for women is also very large I t would be inter
e sting to kn ow whether the life of women really changed for
tuni ty for
,

s ru nr
'

or

WOME N

IN S CRI PTI ONS

IN A TI I O
'

the

better at thi s tim e or whether the gain in public re cog

ni tio n empty in itself was oset by a declin e in the dign ity
of family life just as at the sam e pe riod when legal restriction s
seem to have bee n lightest for Roman women and when the
old religious form of marriage with me nus to a great exten t
went out of use the position of women among the upper cla sses
was in reality most degraded
Another i nterest ing consideration is the i mmediate effect
of the introduction of C hri stianity
Toward the poor towa rd
slaves and in i ts moral effects in general it must have bee n
a
l
s
f
r
ood
but
an
a
cetic
e
igion
taught
by
A
iatic
ome
s
r
s
o
s
s
g
centuries it materially lowered the po sition of women
and
m odern civilization is far from having freed itself from those
I t would be dif cult to imagine a woman occupy
i nuen ces
ing in a modern state a position which would correspond in
public estim ation with that of the priestess of Demete r at
Eleusis
For Athens as for all communities a study of legal enact
ments and the opinions of individuals more or less extraor
di nary does not offer as true a view of social conditions as is
provided by testimony which comes from the everyday life
And such evidence i s especially valuable
of ordinary pe rsons
when it comes to us in a form so little liable to falsication as
the insc riptions
,

'

N OTE

All Greek proper names have been transli terated except a

few well kn own forms such as Lycurgus Pluto Propylaaa
Ere chtheum
In an appendix i s given a list intended to be complete of
Atti c inscriptions i n which women are mentioned They are
arranged un der the same headings as the chapters
All references are to the Inscriptiones Graecae unless other
-

STU DY OF WOME N

IN

ATTI C INS CRI PTI ONS

wise stated The abbreviations use d to designate the other

works referred to are given in the Bibliography
.

RE LI G I O U S

AS SO CIA TI O N S A N D PUB LI C H ON ORS

for the

Athenian woman s activities

beyond the household to judge from inscriptions was found
in the service of the gods Women presided over many i m
portant
well as lesser cults an d as the worship
and as priesth oods
of the gods was a function of th e state
were in fact publi c ofces they may properly be said to have
taken part in publi c life within this restricted area For the
most part it was to the women of certain disti nguished families
as the Euboutadai from whom the priestesse s of Athena Polias
were chosen the Eum olpi dai and the Kerykes to whom these
ofces fell In a way this may be considered fortunate as ih
was the women Of high station that Athenian ideas Of
propriety woul d most restrict While on account Of wealth and
position they had none Of the freedom which the necessities
of com mon life as earnin g part Of the family i ncome market
i n g washin g i n the streams or at the fountai ns or working
in the elds gave to the poor woman As usual the women Of
the middle class to Whom both kin ds of opportuni ty were
denied had a life O f less variety than the other two
From i nsc riptions we kn ow Of about forty cults to which
women were attached as priestesses ; among them those Of
1
2
three male divinities Dionysos Anthi os Heli os and Apollo

D elphi ni os
S ome of these positions were of gr ea t importance
as that Of the priestess Of Athena Polias and O f the priestess
of D emeter at Eleusis who was in some res pects supe rior to
all others in the service Of the goddesse s
Many pries tesses of Athena Polias are mentioned in dedi
,

II

i 63 1
.

III i 3 13
.

III i 939
.

A STUDY O F WOME N IN

INS CRIPTIONS

A I I IC
' '

inscriptions where the name of the priestess dates the

Offering and in the Ro m an period her name was simila rl y
l
used in honorary in scriptions to various O mcials
In a decree
passed about 2 7
the date is indicated by the name of the
strategos the priest of Ro m a and Augustus the prieste ss of
2
Athena and the archon in that order
The services of the
priestess were recognized publicly and decrees in her honor
were not infrequently passed One dating from the middle
of the thi rd century offers praise and a golden c rown to a
priestess and her hus band with an order that the decree be
3
inscribed under the direction of the scribe of the prytany
Thi s woman whose name was probably Lysistrate was the
daughter of Polyeuk tos of Bate an archon of the M esogei oi
who passed an honorary decree in his favor for his zealous
4
Her aunt had also been
atte ntion to the worshi p of Herakles
a priestess of Athena and her statue made by the sons of
5
Praxiteles was erected by members of her family
The serv
ices O f Lysistrate as enumerated in the decree beyond the
pious performance of her duty consisted in gifts of the O npatov
the Tpcxa m os and another garment belonging to Athenian
ritual
with one hundred drachmae to the Peri ergidai who
3
had charge of certain parts of the worshi p of Athena
A metrical i nscription on the basis of a priestess s statue
variously date d in the latter part of the fourth century the
beginning of the third or sti ll later refers to the not i nglorious

toi l in the fair house of pure Pallas to which reverend

Fate brought her A verse for the statue O f Philotera shows
the change from piety toward the god s to self gloricati on
which is so characteristic of late inscriptions even dedications
The family of the priestess receives the chi ef attention of the
writer who tells us that she numbered among her ancestors
catory

III i 6 15
II i 602
.

6 16 , 652

III
II
.

i 63
.

3
.

1377

II
II

i 374
137 8
.

A STUDY

or

WOME N IN

A I I IC

th e

IN S CRIPTIONS

' '

orator Lycurgus and Diogenes the liberator O f Athens

An early example of public praise bestowed upon a priestess
2
is the decree of the se nate and people in favor of Penteteris
daughter of Hi erokles of Phlya in the rst half of the se cond
century Her nam e dates two dedications made during her
3
An other of the sam e period is a decree
te nure of ofce
made by the people of Delphi i n honor O f C hrysis priestess of
Athena Polias This priestess had accompanied the pro
cession called the 11 9 M : from Athens to Delphi and the
Delphi ans in return bestowed upon her praise and the crown
which is ancestral with the Delphi ans
M oreover to hen
and her descendants are gran ted a series of im portant privi
leges proxenia the rights of consulting the oracle before
others of bei ng heard rst i n court of personal inviolability
of freedom from taxes of occupyi ng a front seat at all the
games held by the city of owning land and a house and all
other honors belonging to proxenoi and benefacto rs of the ci tyj
I n later tim es under the Roman empe rors honorary decree s
The usual formula
for priestesse s became extremely comm on
can be seen in an i nscription i n honor of Sabiniana Ham illo
upon whom praise is bestowed
of the se cond century A D
by the tribe of the Praxi ergidai by the decree of the council
of the Areopagus at the request of th e C ounci l of F ive Hun

dred and of the People

The honor i s a reward for her

piety towa rd the goddess

Several inscriptions dating from the Augustan period to the
mention the hierophantis of Demeter
second century A D
using the title as a nam e in accordance with the feelin g that
This custom was
her pe rsonality was lost in her sac red Ofce
observed by the hierophant an d dadouchos also A decree
of the people awarded for piety toward th e goddess nam es th e
1

1
A

11 i 550
.

s
.

407g

Di tt , 593, p 355
.

11 ii i 137 9, 1380
111 i 901, 914
.

0
.

A STUDY

8
re

or

cipient of the honor

of

Philai dai

WOME N IN ATTI C IN S CRI PTIONS

as

Hi erophantis , daughter

Am phi os

of

On a basis found at Eleusis a hi erophantis boasts of havin g

i nitiated the Emperor Hadrian into the Mysteries ; she i s th e
mother of Markianos and daughter of Demetrios havi ng
concealed her own name in unfathomable depths from the
2
time when the Ke kropi dai ma de her hierophantis of De o
was in uenced by the
The hierophantis of Kore r 69 n w epa s
same convention as we see from an inscription dedicating t o
the two goddesses a statue of a hi erophantis of Kore daugh te r
3
and a descendent of the grea t Pericles
of Pericles of Oion
The custom of laying aside the personal name while origi nally
conventional later came to have a mystical association nu
4
known in earlier times
I t is however disregarded in an
inscription probably honorary whi ch records the gift Of a
hi erophantis r 66 vem epas Phi loxena who covered with silver the

altar of the goddess and again on a seat in the Dionysiac

6
theatre
There is some inscriptional evidence for matters pertain ing
to cults and the priestesses attached to them The priestess
of Athena Polias received formal notice of the arrival of the
sac red Objec ts from Eleusis on the fourteenth Boedromi on

it being the duty of the phaidyntes of Demeter to inform her

8
Fragments of a law or decree of the early fourth century give
the payment for sacricing made to the priestesses of Hera
Demeter Chloe D ionysos An thi os and two others whose
I t took the form of portions of the offer
h arries are eaced
i ngs and consisted of hides meat
heat honey oi l and re
wood
A record of the trea surers at Eleusis contains a reference to
9
the house of the priestess of Demeter
,

'

111 i 886
.

III

i 6
.

Mysteres p
,

111 i 900
I
111 i 899
a 11 i
63 1

176

1895,

111 i 33 1
.

1 13

17 18
-

A STUDY

WOME N IN ATTI C INS CRIPTIONS

or

Several other ins criptions deali ng with women in the char

While
acter of priestess have interest for various reasons
Kallisto and Phei dostrate were priestesses of Themis an d
N emesis at Rhamn us duri ng the thi r d century Me gakles
Offered to Themis the statue made by Chai restratos in grati
tude for a victory as gym nasiarch and comi c choregos on
l
which occasion he was crowned by the people
Probably
duri ng the tenure of the same priestesses S ostratos Offered
2
two ma rble seats for the portico of the temple ; an d i n the
second century Hi erokles dedicated a statue of hi s moth e r
Ari stonoe priestess of N emesis in the smaller temple at
8
Rhamnus
The rst priestess of the Fortune of Athens was Re gilla the
wife of Herodes Atticus probably at the temple to Fortune
built by her husband near the Panathenaic stadium Her
statue was erected at the req uest of the Areopagus by the

traders of the Piraeus

Seats in the Theatre of Dionysos were assigned to
and pe rhaps also to women who had in some way
r
atitude
o
f
the
people
M
any
n
ame
o
f
w
o
men
s
g
under the em
and th ese furni sh impo rtant te stimony in favor
that women comm onl y atte nded productions of
an d comedi es certam
ly in Rom an times probably in all periods
Among them we n d the priestesses of the greater c ults as

that of Athena Polias and besides the seat inscribed with this
title are three which were marked Megiste s by vote
From other inscriptions it is known that several priestesses
3
The hi erophantis of Demeter
of Ath ena bore that name
and many priestesses of more obscure c ults of which little else
.

II v
.

1233c

Di tt , 397

and note

II
III

111 i 63 , 4613 , 6 15, 6 16, 652

.

111 i 33 1
.

157 0

i 383
.

II v
III i
.

l 38ob

32 5, 327 , 358

10

is kn own ,

UD Y

ST

or

WO ME N m

those of Aphrodite

as

A TTIC IN S CRIP I IO N B
'

Epi tragia

and

Helios appea r

d by the pri es te sses of Ro ma and Augustus Caesar

of Hestia of the Ro mans

and of Hes ti a Livia and "ulia
possibly three divinities although it has been sugges te d tha t
Livia was deied under these titles Antonia the wife O f
Drusus also had a priestess
Five of these inscriptions are nam es without des ignation of

ofce among them that of Alkis the rst wife of Herod es

Atticus whose seat was awarded to her by vote An other sea t
8
is inscribed with the name Laodam eia
This m ay refer to
a priestess of Demeter as a Flavia Laodam eia appears i n
9
Minor religious ofci als
se veral inscriptions from Eleusis
were also granted seats in the Theatre at least under the
lo
Two herse phoroi of Ge Th em i s two of Ei leithyia i n
Empi re
ll

probably the same goddess as Artemis Agrotera a

A grai
13
hym nestria of Peitho or perhaps Aphr odite Peitho and thre e

on
are found here
kanephoroi 117 5 W
To women and girls who held no Ofce as priestess the wor
shi p of the state furni shed various occa sions for se rvi ce and
honor The errhephoroi four children of noble birt h who were
"5
chose n by the king archon for the worshi p of Athena were
often represented in statues which their fami lies set up on the
Acropolis The inscription s state that the girl acted as errhe
16
r
d
r
s
to
Athena
to
Athena
and
Pan
o
o
Two
h
r
o
s
o
o
f
s
o
p
7
these
statues were erecte d d uring the im perial peri od by
honorary decrees of the senate and th e people A Ro man
sente

111 i 3 13
334
111 i 335
111 i 3 15
III i 322, 365
111 i 3 16
111 i 3 12 ; Cf note to 324
111 i 342
1
111 i 3 18
111 i 230, 895 ; B C H , 1895, pp 1 13, 134
1'
1'
111 i 35 1
Farnell, 2 p 609
111 i 3 19
1'
Paus I 27 3
Frazer, 2 p 344
111 i 338
138 1 1
1
2
1
1
III
1
1
3
90
3
5
i
88
7
9
7
1
385
9
9
II ii i 1379
383
,
,
,
,
;
III i 916, 918
.

A STUDY O F WOME N IN ATTI C IN S CRI PTIONS

11

girl Tertia daughter of Lucius

was not only errhephoros
but had also been a bas ket bearer at the Eleusinia and at
E pi dauros as well as an initiate from the altar when ini tiated
3
dated between the
into the mysteries
In an i n scription
years 200 and 150
in honor of a priest of Asklepios hi s
daughter i s mentioned as an arrhephoros at the Epi dauri a ;
3
an errhephoros to Demeter and K ore is known and from the
hersephoroi
of Ge Themis
sea ts of the Dionysiac theatre

and of Eileithyia i n Agrai

I t i s certai n that all errhephoroi
were not chi ld ren or young girls or at least that by the se cond
cen tury A D youth or virginity was not requisite for holding
the ofce for a mother on the occasion of her performi ng
this function erected a herm of her son a young man at the
reques t of her husband
by vote of the C ouncil of Five
5
Hundred }
M any young girls lled the Ofce of basket bearer at various
fest ivals
A priest of Asklepios was assisted by hi s son as
klei douchos as was customary and by his niece as basket
6
beare r
A basket bearer whose statue was dedicated to Zeus
1
Soter and A thena Soteira probably too k part in the Dii soteria
an d the senate and people issued a decree in scribed on a tablet
whi ch is adorned with thr ee crowns in honor of a maiden who
had been basket bearer to the M other of the Gods and to
8
D ionysos on two occasions
In one example praise was not
bestowed directly upon the maiden but upon her father ; in
Z opyros the father of T
the year 187
who carried the
sac red basket of Dionysos was crowned with i vy by the people
and the decree was inscribed on a stele and set up in the temenos
9
An i nscription mention s another young girl
of D ionysos
who was basket bearer to Pythi an Apollo and at the Pana
lo
the n aea as well as initiate from the altar
l

'

III i 916
III i 822 a
II i 420
.

11 i 453b
II i ii 1204
II
1388

1'

III
II
.

i 9 19
.

1387

III
II
.

i 3 18, 3 19
1388b
.

12

A STUDY

or

WOME N IN ATT I C IN S C RI PTIONS

Statues of the chi ldren called initiates from the altar

who took part in the Mysteries were Often dedicated to the
goddesses by thei r families and sometim es at a later period by
l
the state
A marble altar at Eleusis was set up in honor of
a chi ld "unia Them i sto kleia by her mother who claimed to
be a descendent of dadouchoi of Pericles and C onon and of
2
Alexander
Among other religious functions mentioned in the i nscri p
3
tions is that of orgiastis ; Ktesikleia who offered a statue of
her husband a dadouchos after his death calls herself by this
name She be longed to the Eum olpidai and helped to weave
4
the peplos for the Panathenaea
Krana a zakoros bade her sons Eukarpos and Dionysi os

e
rec
t
a
tatue
in
h
hono
r
which
w
done
The
Athe
n
ia
s
e
r
a
s
n
s
g
decreed honorary statues to two V estal virgins Aurelia an d
6
V aleria for piety
Ro man women often received this honor from the Athenians
and we have such ins criptions to Licinia daughter of Lucullus
7
Ponti ous and to Sempronia wife of Lucius C ellins Popli cola
who was accused by C aelius in 56
The societies formed to promote the worship O f eastern
divinities whose cults were brought to Athens by traders and
by slaves offered a eld of activity to women of the lower
classes and to foreign women free or freed who li ved especiall y
m acus on Sah m mj d about the harbors These o rgiasti c
c ults attracted female devotee s and many priestesses were
9
attached to them
The mother of Aeschi nes served S abazi o
10
Several honorary decrees to these priest
the Phrygian god
.

II

1388 ; 111 i 908, 910 913 ; Eph Ar ch

pp 27 7
-

Mysteres

1"

re l

2 10,

no

pp

111 i 164

111 i 865

Adsoc

11 iii 14 13, 1414

1899,

39 ;

111 i 915
Ktesiklei a
11 ii 956
C f Ki rchner,
111 i 87 6, 87 7
111 i 866 ; Ci ce ro, Pro Gaeli c
.

Assoc

rel

A STUDY

13

WOMEN IN ATTI C INS CRIPTIONS

or

e exi st I nscriptions of the O rgeones of the M oth er of the

Gods fur nish the greatest amount of inf ormation about these
Among the
societies and the position of women in them
orgeones the priestess held the highes t ra nk although there
She was chosen by lot to serve for a year
was a priest also
but could hold Offi ce a second time ; she had complete control
of the temple and the sacrices and the great festival of Attis
was her especial c harge even to the c ostumes of the women
1
who took part i n i t
One of the former priestesses was chose n
as z akoros or assistant by the priestess in Of ce and if her
the appointment was ratied by the
choice was approved

members of th e society
M embers of the society when o er
i ng sacrice gave parts of female animals as well as payment

i n money to the priestess

While she might make expendi
tur es they must be carefully accounted for and she could be
4
The orgeones
ned up to fty drachmae for ext ravagance
d ecreed honors to the priestess of Syrian Aphrodite N i kasis
th e C orinthi an for offering sacrice
s
probably because this

w
a
s
f
f
r
f
odde
ss
O
t
e
n
con
u
ed
with
the
M
othe
the
God
s
O
s
g
The thiasos of Serapists established i n Piraeus had as i ts
president about the year 2 50 a woman Niki ppe She was
a wa rded praise an d a c rown by her fellow members for oeri ng
s acrices on the appointed days an d her name is placed rst

i n the list of ofcers and members

7
Two li sts of members composing eran oi are known All
are women and as thei r names are generally dimi nutives and
n one has the patronym ic
they were no doubt freedwomen
or foreigners
Both of these lists belong to the third century
About the middle of the fourth century a thiasos of m en and

9
women existed in Salamis
A late inscription of the third
cen tury A D gives a lis t of the orgeones devoted to Belela and
ess s

A
I

II

6 19, 622 , 623, 624

i 624
.

11 ii 988, 989
.

A
.

II
II
II

1 624
.

i 62 7
ii 987
.

Assoc rel , p 21
11 i 6 17
111 i 12808
.

1
.

A STUDY

14

WOME N IN ATTI C INS CRI PTIONS

or

attendant gods with ofcials called ankonophoroi and the

priestesses Th e list was made by the hym nestis One of the
priestesses i s called the peri raptria ; se veral others who held
ofce for a year are praised for large expenditur es from
their own property They include a priestess of the Syrian
goddess and one of Aphrodite
A wreath bearer i s also
mentioned
We have fragmentary lists of the maiden s of Eupatri d
families who wove and embroidered the peplos for the Pa na
1
thenai c festival and port ion s O f an honorary dec r
ee re warding
their se rvi ce The decree was made at the request of the
fathers of the maiden s and it record s that b eside their work
on th e peplos they had provided a cup wort h one hund red
to offer to the goddess as a memorial of the occasion
d that the cup should be accepted and dedi
1e and that each maiden should be crowned
a wreath of leaves and her name engraved with the decree
h was se t up beside the temple of Athena Polias The
date of these inscriptions i s not positively xed but they
probably belong to the early part of the rst century B C
th ough they are possibly older The number of maidens
engaged was as large as one hundred to one hundred and
twenty Some of them were perhaps children who took n o
real part i n the work
I t was the duty of the errhephoroi to
begin the peplos but their age between seven and eleven ,
would prevent their taking more than a ceremonial part i n
The names of these young
the wea vi ng and embroidery

gi rls as D emo daughte r of M iltiades Ktesi kleia daughte r

Of Apollonios of Acham ai are enough to prove that their
Ifunction was reserved as an honor for daughters of the noble
families of Attica who at all tim es were especially concerned
with the worship of the gods and who tended under the
her

'

II v
.

47 7 d

Cf her statue
.

of

her husband

as

dad ouchos,

12

16

STUDY

WOME N

or

IN

ATTI C IN S CRI PTI ONS

uch inscri ptions for the family of Herodes Atti cus

are known ;
the tribe Pandi oni s erected a statue of hi s rst
1
wife Alkis ; Herodes hi m self set up a statue of Re gilla hi s
second wife ;
again the Aianti d tribe prai sed Herodes and
Al ki s as benefacto rs presented them with crown s and set

up statues of them
The C ounci l of the Areopagus together
with the counci l of Six Hundred an d the Peo ple honored Athe

nais his daughter in the same way

In conclusion it should be noted that not only were wom en
honored in the various ways whi ch have been described but
they are als o not infrequently mentioned in inscriptions as

having erected statues of relatives

Many

D ED I CATI ON S

Among the earliest dedications at Athens dating from the

period before the Persian Wars are several by women One of
the most interesting of these inscriptions i s upon a piece of a
marble basis for a statue the work of Archerm os the Chian
which Iphi dike dedi cated to Athena Hi s nam e helps to
date the ded ication in the rst half of the sixth century O n
a marble support probably belonging to a vessel for lustral
water i s the inscription Smikythe a washerwoman Offered
7
m of pre
a tith e
This was foun d am ong
Persi an date in the foundation s of the Parthenon A father
Kynarbos Offered bronze statues of his chi ldren Aristarche an d

prayi ng the M aiden to protect them

A
Archestrat
basis on the top of which are two hollows for offerings was
1
The wife s
dedicated to Athena by Lysias and Euarchis
.

111 i 674
.

1
1

II

Di tt 398
.

1 Suppl
.

B
7

99

1
.

111 i 3
.

1392b, 1413 ; 111 i 83 6 , 904 ;

p 18 1
1 Suppl
.

C H , 1895,
1 Suppl
1 Suppl
.

III

113

p
p

87

86

i 664
.

A STUDY

OF

WOME N IN ATTI C IN S CR IPTIONS

17

gains or property Kallis Em pedea

1
and Ergoklei a
Offere d rst frui ts or tith es to the goddess
1
and by
and statues were given by Phryn e and Sm ik

A thenagora
Before the fourth century the single name Y

occurs most frequently though we also n d Pythogeneia

7
wife or daughter of AgyTrhi os of Lakiadai ;
wife of Eume
1
lides of Sphettos ; an d a fragment with traces of the father s
n am e
From th e fourth century many more dedications are known
Two women Leuke and Myrrhine were members of a society
c omposed of persons who wash ed clothing on th e banks of
the Ilissos an d joined i n dedi cating to the N ym phs and other
d eities worshi pped there a stele of Pentelic marble bearing a
At the top stand Herm es and three nymphs near a
re lief
gure representing the AcheloOs and Pan playing a pipe
O n the lower half i s an altar near whi ch are Demeter and
Between
K ore and a m an with a horse perhaps a local hero
The was hers made an
the two groups is thi s inscripti on :

oerin g to the Nymphs in fullm ent of a vow and to all the

9
od
s
g
With the exception of Asklepios offerings of Athenian women
seem to have been made m ost frequently to fem ale divinities
O nl y six dedi cation s made to Zeus alone before the Roman
f
f
e
r
iod
have
be
e
n
ound
I
n
t
h
e
ou
th
centu
r
y
N
ik
a
o
r
r
a
p
g

the wife of Phi listi des of Pai oni a oered a gift to Zeus in O be
10
In the same century
di ence to the comm and of an oracle
Mynni on offered a relief representing worshi ppers to Zeus
1
11
Philios an d three dedications to Zeus Meili chi os and one to

i
f
t
a
tithe
i
s
g

of

her

Suppl 37 3
1 Suppl
.

I Suppl
I Suppl
II
1327
II
157 2
.

11

1
1

11

Suppl

1 Suppl

p
p

11

202

80

I 400
I 389
II
157 1b
1578 1579
II
.

p 99
p 103
p 80
p 99

117

1579h

A STUDY

18

or

WOME N IN ATTI C IN S CRIPTIO N S

Zeus and Helios are known The last possesses some interest
s ince very few Atheni an i nscriptions whi ch mention Helios
have come down to us and all but thi s belong to the Ro man
pe riod The c ult of Helios received little attention at Athens
but since the dedi cator Mamm i a was probably not a citize n
she m ay have come from some region where the worship of
the Sun god was of importance O erin gs to Ze us Meili chi os
were piac ular, and it i s possible that this was made to atone
/
for M i a whi ch offended not onl y Zeus the deity claiming
a penalty for si n but also the S un as the god from whom every

thi ng unclean must be hidden

From Piraeus is a relief of a
1
Heduti on to Zeus Meili chi os
serpent with the words
Several dedicato ry inscriptions to Zeus Hypsis tos come from
the Ro man period A sm all I onic capital surmounted by an
eagle foun d on the Acropolis was dedicated by "ulia Askle
1
piane for her son as a thank o ffering ; a column found west

In
of the Propylaea was offered by a woman and two men
a rock c ut shrin e near the Pnyx was found a series of curious
inscriptions dedicating to Zeus under the same c ult name
generally in payment O f a vow reliefs of parts of the body in
gratitude for curing disease They include breasts arms
the face and eyes Thr ee men and seven women are the

dedicators
Two dedications to Herakles made by women probably in
the thi rd century one of which is a re lief repre senting the god
7
with worshi ppers were found on the Acropolis
A woman named Nauso made an Offering to the river Ache

and three dedications to Dionysos are recorded i n i n

IO OS
1
The statue of an archon Pleistain os was dedicated
scri pti ons
1

1
1

II

158 5

Farnell, 5 p 419,
II
157 8
111 1 150 156
.

II

Hesiod

24 ;
1
7

1409, 1567 ;

III

II

et

D , 72 5 734
-

111 i 146
11 ii i 1599
.

1 56 5, 1565b

i 193
.

111 i 132
.

1
.

A STUDY

or

19

WOME N IN ATTI C INS C RI PTIONS

by hi s wife Pleistis and hi s daughter Sosini ke on the occasion

1
and in the Ro man period Philotera m ade
of hi s taking oi ce

an offering to Dionysos Aulone us

The worship of the Phrygian moon god Mn was i ntro
duced i nto Atti ca not later than the thi rd century
This is
known from an inscription on a basis which probably sup
ported a small shrin e offered to the god by Dionysios and
1
Babyli a in Piraeus
A relief was dedi cated to NE T by Mi th
1
ri dates and his wife at Thori kos i n the t hi rd century
These
pers ons were no doubt foreigne rs perhaps free dmen and
,

De dications to Asklepios are very numerous , and women

seem to have bee n the most frequent donors to his temple
An ins cription from the Acropolis records an Offering m ade at
1
the bidding of the god ; and two reli efs representing the fem ale

breas t were given by Phi le and Hedeia

O f a somewhat later
time are inscriptions which record gifts to the god from a father

7
and of a mother for her children
on behalf of his daughte r
A hus band pays a vow m ade for his wife perhaps for curing
headaches as a piece of painted marble representing the fore
head and eyes was inserted in the stone cippus on which the
1
i ns cription was cut
A late inscription states that O na(so)
made an offering together with her physicians to Asklepios
10
for curing an i llness by a dream
It is very unusual to n d
the nam es of the physicians in such a dedi cation , although it
was customary for them to sacrice of cially to Asklepios at
11
ce rtain times
and offerings by physicians are mentioned i n

i ns criptions
.

1
1
1
1

II
II
II
II

1409

158 7

1593

1491

11 ii i 1494
111 i 18 6
.

11

11

11 i 352b
.

Cf Foucart , B C H , 1880, pp

Cf Boscher s Lexi con,

Men for illustration of 1593
.

1
.

1
.

II
II

1482 ; 11

1497

15 1 16

II

ii 835 ,
.

The inscri ption is m utilated but thi s

1

111 i 193

13 ; 83 6 ,

II

readi ng is

17

1453

probable

20

Re cords

STUDY O F WOME N

ATT I C IN S CR IPTIONS

IN

of

f
n
i
d
e
dicated
in
the
A
s
kl
i
e
i
o
n
a
re
i
clud
e
d
t
s
e
g
p
in decrees relative to using certai n of them to make so me
larger article and in catalogues of the treas urers of the shri n e
1
These records extend from about 340 to 145 B C as is con
f
f
e
s
n
om
the
name
the
p
r
ie
t
and
dono
M
a
y
e
u
r
d
r
o
s
r
s
o
f
c
t
s
j
the gifts of course antedate by some years the records in
which they are in cluded They are Of great variety includin g
sum s of money usually sm all
The earliest catalogue mad e
f
r
s
a
s
r
f
r
in
the
yea
ive
o
e
ing
om
women
gi
t
f
f
s
s Of
g
\
l m one some in a piece of cloth some in a sma ll dish two
;
y
bronze oenochoae three cups one of silve r ; an d a little tripod
Some women gave jewelry and clothing as a bronz e necklace
with an ornam ent of jas per and gold a seal and thre e pairs
A gil ded leg and a pair of gold eyes and
of women s shoes
One of the gifts of
one of si lver are found in the records
mon ey i s noted i n this curious way : Mnesarete gave t en
drachm ae less three which sh e says Di okles of Myrrhi nous
m ust pay
1
A record ext ending from about 320 to 3 17 shows that the
f
f
a
n
r
m
s
r
r
f
i
f
t
s
wome
took
m
y
o
The
g
r
e
a
te
p
t
th
n
a
o
o
es
e
g
em otos were re presentations of parts of the body which ha d
been cured by the god s aid These include the trunk the
trunk and thi ghs the legs the nipples a si lver hand and one
ma de of gold si lver and marble the n gers the th roat face
a pai r of gold ears the mouth teeth gold and Si lver eyes the
jaw and heads of hair Many Of thes e are describe d as being
i n reli ef on tablets ; some must have been made of clay as they
kneaded or moulded
Little gold and
are called Ka f dm xf a
silver serpents are mentioned seve ral ti mes a nat ural form fo r
the gift to take as the god often appear ed to his wors hippers
1
as a serpen t
.

II

ii 7 66 ,
11 ii 7 66
deb t
.

of a

Cf Rouse , p 339, for

1
11 ii 835
.

other e am
1

ples

of

the dedi cati on

But cf Ro use ,
.

209

A STUDY
Re li efs

WOMEN IN ATT I C IN S CR IPTI ON S

OF

21

epresenting worshippers were common

Several
cups were given by women though they were more often offered
by priests
One cup in this inscription is des cribe d as egg
1
and another as a cup with a smooth surface om a
shaped

A mother o ered for herself and her ch ild

m en te d with gold
a representati on of the female body and a small anklet per
1
haps a li ttle girl s ornament
1
On the other side of this stele is a simi lar inscription but
It is a decre e relating to the worship of AS
of late r date
kle pi os followed by a list of gifts a large proportion of which
we re made by women These include representations of every
part of the body among whi ch the eyes predominate of an
ulcer and a part of the inner ear a child s hand offere d by a
mother for her little son a cup offered by a child a wooden
unguent box a cup with a face upon it marble dolphi ns orna
m e nted with gold and a rattle in the Shape of a sm all cup
We need not suppose that the cu ps and ornamental objects
were always offerings for re lief from illness for no doubt the
worshi ppers consulted the god about other matte rs as well
1
I n the ins cription relating to the cul t of the Hero Ph ysician
foun d in Athena Street women are mentioned as donors to
This ins cription is a decree providing that the
the shri ne
metal offerings therein enumerate d shoul d be melted down
The names of dedi cators
and us ed to make an oenochoe
we re to be recorded on a tablet set up in the sanctuary The
decre e is dated in the latter part of the third century The
women s gifts are reliefs one inscribed ; eyes a hand and a
little painted shield are also mentioned
r

pposed to 3W 6: is found on an Atti c oe nochoe

Cf A de Lo ngpri er O euvres V ol 3 p 33 1
1
Th e word a dxpw os is appli ed to woven m ate rials an d by Plutar ch
to san dals ( M ord
Perha ps i t m eans here i nset wi th gold
II
in the form of m ed alli ons or otherwise like the epi blemata i n som e of the
vea els fro m B osco reale
1
4
1
Cf Pollux II p 123
II ii 836
II i 403
1

Actor i n this se nse as

.

A STUDY O F WOME N IN ATT I C INSCRIPTI ONS

22

in the lists of gifts to Asklepios it is noticeable he re tha t

the names of women which are frequently diminutives as
Lam i di on Kalli sti on Euthi on are seldom accompanied by
patronymi cs or demotics However among the few whi ch
have them we n d that of Mei di on the wife of Glauki ppos
who was the son of the orator Hyperi des and
of Kollytos
himself an orator Except for thi s woman and an architheoros
nothi n g is known of the condi tion in life of the dedi cators
from whi ch fact we may infer that they were generally from
the humbler ranks in the state freedmen and foreigners
1
This is what we should expect and as Professor Rouse notes
in hi s study of Greek votive offeri ngs there was no antagoni sm
between physicians and the temples of healing di vinities be cause
they appealed to di fferent classes as in modern times the
sanctuaries of Europe are most ofte n visited by simple people
An interesting example of thi s custom whi ch seems to be as
enduring as human nature has bee n observed in France during
the war It is usual in certain parts of the country for relatives
of soldi ers to o er gifts at the shri nes of "eanne d Arc for thei r
welfare and safe return and for men who have recovered from
woun ds to dedicate to her small models of the injured part
Many gifts we re made by women to the goddess of the
city though we have not such extensive lists O f dedications
with names attached as remain from the shri nes of Asklepios
and Artemis B rauronia The earliest dedications have already
been mentioned From the early part of the fourth century
Meneia made an offeri ng to
is t his i nteresting inscri ption
Athena having seen a vision by the powe r of the goddess
r9
m
s
d
in
t
hi
s
e
n
s
e
i
s
not
Attic
M
enei
v
:
a

c
d
A
s
}
( p j
p i
The name elsewhere appears only
was probably a foreigner
in an inscri ption from Herm ione
As

'

cf

Rouse ,

II

206

Cf Re inach, B C H , 1885,
C H , 1889, p 168

1426 h

Foucart,

pp

257 3

For the date

A STUDY

24

WOME N

or

ATTI C INS CR I PTIONS

IN

hundred d rachmae
The meani ng of one of these inscri p
1
tions is doubtful as here the position of the free dman s an d
the citizen s names is reve rsed It is possible that the citize n
1
won a case for neglect of duty again st the fre edman and com
m em orate d hi s victory just as the freed person di d his rele as e
1
from service
While the number of dedi cations to Aphrodi te is not lar ge
there are se veral of interest In a shrine on the right of t h e
Sacred Way to Eleusis near the convent of D aphni were foun d
1
ins criptions by a number of women and men some cut in
the rock others on bas es Bronze and marble gur es of doves
we re in the Shri nes A marble tablet of the Roman pe riod
with a mutilated inscri ption to Aphrodi te and a relief of a fe
male breast is perhaps a thank O ffering for the bi rth of a child
Aristoklei a oered a statue to Aphrodi te O urania in payment
7
An architrave block found in the wall by t he
of a vow
Beul Gate bears a fragmentary in scription of the fourth
century to Aphrodi te Pandemos with three doves in relief
It seems to be part of a dedication made by the people at the
in stance of a fami ly devoted to the cult A list of nam es
follow of which three remain one of a man and two of women
one of whom was the priestess This inscription shows that
Pandemos was an ofcial epithet not merely a popul ar nam e
and that the priestess of the cult was a free woman and a

citizen
Only a sm all number of dedi cations to Artemis by wom en
are known as ide from the long lists of offerings to the Brauro
nian sanctuary On be coming priestess for life Euam e ra
1
made an offeri ng to the goddess ; a small basis of Hymettian
.

\L

II v
.

111 i 130a
.

II

Cf

1588

ii 7 7 2
.

1
.

51m, dr oa r aa tov

v 786b 7 7 6 c Cf Rouse pp 2343

II v 1558b Cf Fans 1 37 7
Rouse p 2 57 and n 11
1
1
II v 1531b
II v

11 ii 7 69 77 6 ; 11
H
1556 1558 ;
.

II

7 72 b

1205b

A STUDY

OF

WOME N IN ATT I C INSCRIPTIO NS

m arble found i n

25

Pi rae us bears the in scription Axi os and

Kle io made an oeri ng to Artemis Nana in fullm ent of
1
a vow
The Babylonian goddess N ana was sometimes
i dentied with Arte mis in the cities of Asia Minor and per
h aps Axios and Kleio had come from one of them to Pi raeus
where many foreigners dwelt
I n the second century Timothea
wife of Hagni as of Erchia made an oeri ng to Artemis Dikt ynn a

fo r her children
The records of the treasurers of Artemis Brauronia Show
t h at a very large number of gifts were made to this sh rin e
by Athenian women
The lists which we possess we re drawn 8
u p in the rst half and mid dle of the fourth centu ry for the
i nformation of the incoming ofcials by those passi ng out of
These gifts which are principally personal adornments
O f ce
a n d clothing were kept i n the temple of B rauronian Artem is
They are generally
t h e Erechtheum and the Parthenon
d e scribed with considerable exactness fort unately for us as
t h ey throw some light upon the d ress and ornaments of the
Besides these offe rings a variety of
w omen of the period
o t he r object s belonged to the sh ri ne such as little si lve r shields
i n cense burners , and small t ripods O f bronze si lver and gold
K le i to the wife of Aristokrates the grandson of Cimon gave
3
a little ivory lyre and plect ron in an ornamented box
Thaum arete wife of Tim oni des dedi cated several curious
a rticles a fan for blowing the re two sh eep of gil ded woo d
e i ght iron rings one set with un re d gold a glass seal and
1
Among the gifts of jewelry are gold wreaths
ve tin ear ri ngs
ri ngs some of them with seals and gold bracelets and neck

'

'

The re i s a great variety

II
II

1
1

1 80
1

16 13 ; 111 i 13 1

1609

For

of

clothing many articles bei ng

,

other

dedi cati ons to Artem i s cf

II

1603 ; 111 i
.

11 ii 652
.

B v
.

31

1
.

II

ii 652
.

29

A STUDY

26

WOME N IN ATT I C IN S CRIPTION S

or

brightly colored and elaborately ornamented We know very

little about the appearance of many of them though reference s
in literature Show that they were considered extravagant and
luxurious Among them are a spotted robe with sleeves
1
called xysti s in a box and a Persian garment ( kandys) with
gold ornaments (this was worn by the statue of the goddess at
Tryphem a may refer to
the time the inventory was made )

one or to several kinds of garments

The chi toniskos was a
favorite offering and was made of vari ous mate rials especially
ne linen of Amorgos and hemp
The colors used are frog
green crocus and yAa vxewim perhaps grayish blue and
1
purple A half woven chi toni sk os i s a puzzling item M any
embroidered chitons and pieces of cloth we re dedi cated such
as a square emb roide red with two gure s joining hand s an d
a piece of cloth with a re presentation of Dionysos makin g
libation with a woman pouring wine Some chi tons were
worked in the centre others with borders in a wave like pat
tern or in
The garments are double and
Single some with sleeves some
double winged
An am
r
n
s
s
mu
t
be
a
cloak
h
wl
like
w
r
ap
au
i
gave
n
o
N
a
h
o
o
s
s
e
c
p

a woman s himation
This item proves that Xanthippe had
at leas t an argument from custom on her side when she refused
to go out in Socrates himation The goddess welcomed gifts
of men s as well as women s clothing for Phan odike gave a
7
man s short chiton
Five tri bones a spotted cuiras s and a
chlam ys are also found in the inventories There were girdles
head bands and a veil among the women s ornaments
The variety and the elaborateness of the clothing some of
which was evidently superuous or ornamental shows that the
dress of the Athenian women of the fourth century was much
.

l
i

C f Ar Lye 1 189 ; Theo c 2 7 4

Xen Cyr 1 3 2 , A nab 1 5 8
II
7 58 B C ol 11 v 38
II
754 v 17

Ar Frag 309, 7
11 ii 7 5 1 B C ol 11
.

11 ii 7 58
.

C ol 11
.

13

vs

24 26

A STU DY

WOME N

or

IN

ATTI C IN S CRIPTIONS

27

articial and b right in eect than representations in art

woul d lead us to suppose A throng in the theatre on a sunny
day must have had a very gay and ower lik e effect with spots
frog green and crocus yellow mingling with the
of purple
i
dominat
ng
white
re
p
The simple name of the dedicator generally accompanies
th e note of the offe ring but a few h ave patronymi cs or de
m oti cs or both
Most O f the dedications to Demeter were made in com
m emoration of some religious act or of the holding of a sac red
1

Statues of initiates from the altar

a hierophant
of ce
1
1
1
a dadouchos and a hi erophantis were oered
an exegete
One Offering was
by mothers and wives to the goddesses
de di cated by a woman who had made a vow on behalf of her
1
Philia oere d a statue of her daughter Philulla
chi ld ren ;
7
To Demeter Euchloe a
whi ch was made by Ke phi sodotos
1
father and mother offered a statue of their son
1
One dedi cation by a woman to Dione is known It belongs
to the fourth century by which time her worship was well
est ablished at Athen s
1
Gratitude to Ei leithyia was manifested i n the Shape of
M ost
statues of ch i ldren offe red by their mothe rs or fathe rs
of these ins criptions belong to the thir d century and late r
D uring the rst century an offering was made to the Mother
11
at her bidding by a woman daughter and wife
of the Gods
of citizen s ; and Megiste a citizen offe red a statue to her i n
M other of the Gods gracious
Pirae us under the title of
1
L Num mi us Phai dreas and his wife
healing Aphrodite
Num m i a Bassa daughter of a hi erokeryx and descendant of a

m ore

'

'

1
1

II

B
B

1388 , 1389 ;

H , 1895,
H , 1895,
.

191

p
p

128

1 13
11

1
.

15506

III
II

III i 888
.

i 7 20
.

1
.

1559

C f Farnell, 1

11
.

II v
.

1586

Di tt 394 ; Eph Ar ch , 1899, p 2 10, No 39 ;

III

40 ; 2

i 136
.

II
II

etc.

1413

1399

Cf

62 1,

III

note

i 134
.

A STUDY

28

or

WOME N IN ATTI C INS CRIPTIONS

whose members had held many religious ofces offered

1
a statue of their daughte r Kleo to I sis in ful lment of a vow
A very curious and dii cult in scription found in the Nym
phaeum beside the Kephis sos records the gift of a shri ne to the
Xen okratei a othe rwise
river and othe r gods by a woman
unknown The i nsc ription upon a bas is or altar with a cavity
for offeri ngs i n the top states that Xen okratei a daughter an d
mother of Xeni ados of Chollei dai built a Shri ne to the Ke phi ssos
and the gods worshi pped with him ( probably the N ymphs
and perhaps Artemis and Eileithyia whose shrine was near)
where any who wish may sacrice The offe ring is made in
gratitude for instruction and in return for benets already
bestowed
Xenokratei a may perhaps have sought help from
the divini ties presiding over child birth The use of he r
father s and son s names without mention of a husband may
denote that she was a widow or not legally married and th e
latter supposition is strengthened by a relief on the altar where

Apollo I on and Xouthos are represented

family

TAB ELLAE D EFIXIO N UM

Another source of information about the life of women of the

d
e
x
i
o
n
n
owe
r
cla
ss
e
s
f
o
u
nd
the
Tabell
e
um
These lead
l
i
s
i
a
"
tablets most of whi ch date from the thir d centu ry have bee n
ifoun d in considerable numbers in Attica The practice was to
Irn scri be on them the name s of enemies whom the writer wished
To the names might
to receive punishm ent from the gods
be added the cause of enmity and the method of punishm ent
desi red with invocations to the avenging deities He rmes
unde r the names Cthoni os Katochos and D oli os ; the Earth ;
Hekate Pe rsephone ; and Hades N ails were often driven
.

III

i 905
Eph Arch
.

III
1909 p
Cf

i 904
.

247 ; 191 1,

pp

7 96

A STUDY O F WOME N IN ATTI C INSCRIPTI ONS

29

ignify that the curse was to be as rmly at

t ached to the pe rson again st whom it was di rected as the nai l
was to the lead and the tablet was usually bu ried O ften in a
r
a
f
ve
with
the
intention
o
r
eaching
the
chthonian
deiti
es
g
The inscriptions are plainly the work of illiterate people who
di s regarded grammatical rules ; and thei r hat red was expressed
frankly and often coarsely They may perhaps be conside red
to occupy the same position among the ins c riptions as the
M imes of Herodas in literature and they furnish some inter
1
es ting parallels to them
The pe rsons who wrote these curses and thei r enem ies were
t radespeople women of doubtful re
s la ves and freedm en
s pectabili ty in short the lowest class of the Athenian state

M any of them were foreigners M any women appear in them

be cause i n addition to enmity which they incurred in their
own pe rsons it was customary when cursing a man to include
i
hi s household
Onl y two inscriptions are certam the work of women
1
prays
though others may be and probably are Onesime
Hermes Katochos and the Earth to cause her enemies two
men and any others who may have wronged her to was te
away at the same tim e preserving her the maker of the

1
leaden tablet
Bitto curses in elegiacs Sosiklei a with her
possessions and p ya u9sos her deeds and her mind Wi shes
that she may become hateful to her friends and consigns her
to murky Tartaros and stout bonds to Hekate and the Furies
1
A curious archaistic i nscription i n the form of a letter to the
divinities and Persephone as ks them to take away Tibi tis
the daughter of Choi ri ne with her husband and three ch i ldren
two female and one male and to deprive O f all thei r strength
two boxers The writer was as it appears Galene the daughter

i nto the lead to

Cf R
.

III
III

Wuensch

Praefati o to

57 , 67 , 7 2 , 7 3, 87 , 102
108

III

ii et passi m
1

1
.

III
III

100

102

30
of

A STU DY

or

WOMEN

ATTI C INSCRI PTIONS

IN

Polyklei a

Both were known to Athenaeus as women of

1
low character
Another inscri ption is probably the resul t of
a law suit Two women one of them unfortunately named
A pisti a and several men were cursed in their word s and deeds

with their advocates

S lander and miserly habits were pe rhaps the cause of hat red
1
felt toward Aristo
The writer bound her hands feet tongue
and soul and that she might not be able to spread any more
disgraceful gossip Wished that her tongue might become lead
This tablet was found in a tomb in Pi raeus
An enemy of unusually venomous disposition mus t have
composed the curs e laid upon Chai rylla in whi ch her extrem i
ties mi nd soul head work heart bei ng and tongue are enum er
ated with the request that Lord Hermes take possession O f
Two men probably members of her fami ly are included
he r
in this inscription ; Phryni chos i s to suffer in soul and in eve ry
visible part of hi s body including hi s fat while the extremities
1
soul and eyeb rows of Ki ttos are selected for puni shm ent
Two inscriptions exhi bit enm i ty toward grocers I n one
of them no less than si x are in the phras e of the writer boun d
to Hermes Katochos with their shops O f these six one is a
woman M ania and there are also included i n the prayer for
vengeance Thrai tta the wife of one of the grocers and Gly
whom they call Malthake
I n the other Par
kanthi s
theni on the grocer or huckste r is cursed in hands and feet
with Lyde who kee ps a workshop Ar es kousa the procuress
Lakai na the concubine of M elas and several shopkeepe rs
.

,,

A curse was laid upon Dionys ios the helm et maker and his
wife Artemis the gil der their house workshop work and live
7
An enemy cursed Athenagora a ute maker s wife ,
lihood
-

Athen 587f, 642

.

III
III

1
.

89

69

Of

Trades p
,

32

III
III

106

87

1
.

1
.

III
1H

97

68

A STUDY

32

WOME N

or

IN

ATTI C IN S CRI PTION S

M any women gained their living as grocers or hucksters at

1
1
Athens and two vendors of salt and on e of himatia are
known
I n a verse from the gravestone of two siste rs Eutych ous a
and N ai s they are said to have been skilful playe rs O f the
lyre and barbiton The absence of a patronymi c suggests
that they may have belonged to the lower classes and perhaps
used their musical skill as a means of livelihood but there i s

nothin g in the insc ription to make this more than a supposition

We have also the epitaph of a dancer or t umbler

acture we re some
Women who engaged in trad
1 times
patronized by the state for i n the accounts of the
ltreasurers of the two goddesses at Eleusis for the year
a
m
ong
the
t
rades people to whom money was paid by these
I
l oi ci als are two women
Woolen caps for the temple slaves
7
were bought from Thettale and seventy drachmae were paid
1
for reed s perhaps to strengthen a
to Arte mis from Piraeus
roof under repair
I n the Tabellae de xionum we nd a
gilder the wife of a helmet maker who probably helped her
1
husband by ornam entin g his helmets
,

MO RTAGE

B O UN DARY IN S C RI PTI ON S

AN D

O nly a small number of i nscriptions relate to women as owners

of property or as having any i nte rest in that of their fami li es
M ost of these are on stones used to mark the boun daries of
estates which were m ortaged by fathers or guardians as security
for the payment of dowries
An in scription which illust rates
the common form which was cut upon the stones reads Bound
ary of the house and garden m ortaged as guarantee for the
.

III

30,

8
0

II
II

ii 1357

834 b

III

1
.

64

1
.

III

ii 834b Col 1
.

ii 1456
C f Se pul chral, p 36
11 ii 834b C ol 1 v 7 1
.

III

69

A STUDY O F WOME N IN ATT I C INSCRIPTI ON S

33

a
D
i
do
r
o
1
7
d
r
achm
e
o
s
00
w
dg g
Another in scri ption states that a house and workshop or fac

t ory were mortaged for the dowry of M elitta

Sometimes ,
i n stead of giving property as security for payment of a dowry
th e woman s guardian sold it to he r or more exactly , to her
h usband wit h reservation of the right to repur ch as e it from
1
him
Two in scriptions give variations from the usual formula
A ccording to one a piece of land was given as surety for the
d owry of Hi ppoklei a to the amount of one talent and i ts
v alue above t hat sum was mortgaged to the t ri be of the Kekro
1
d
i
a
i
f
m
i
f
the
a
ly
o
the
L
k
d
a
i
and
the
deme
Phyla
o
m
i
p
y
A second in sc ription i s a renewal of a document dating from
D C
in which Pythod oros assigned a dowry of four
In
he
t housand drachmae to his daughter Xen ari ste
still owed to her hu sband half of that amount and inte rest for
t wo years for which debt the lands and houses named on the

stone we re mortgaged
A very few inscriptions mention women as owners of prop
e rty
O ne of the fourth century records the boundary of a
h ouse and land belonging to Tim ostrate , sister of BoOn and
m othe r of
Tim ostrate was no doubt a widow and

her brother or son represented her as guardian

7
An in scription which dates from the time O f Hadrian con
tai ns the nam es of sixteen women with the situation of pieces
1
of lan d belongi ng to them and the value the reof
M omm sen
thought the record an obli gati o praedi oru m for th e support of
some charitable foundation
suc h as that of Trajan for the
poor of Italy If this explanation i s correct the pe rsons
enrolled had pledged thems elve s and their su ccesso rs in owne r
A
ship to pay a sum reckoned u pon the value O f the lan d
certain Apollonia i s mentioned in it as owne r of an estate i n
of

Kalli strate , daughter

of

1
1

11 ii 1 132
II ii 1 1 13

ii 1109
.

II
7

11 i i 1152
.

1137

111 i 6 1
.

1
.

Cf R G
.

1
.

tart
.

Mo or

Cf 11 ii 1 105
.

496

Herm es

pp

12 9

34

A STUDY O F WOME N IN ATTI C INSCRIPTIONS

Oropos which she bought from the heirs of T Flavius Euphan es

and Arria Atheni on priestess of Athena also contributes from
the income of two pieces of land one a cleari ng

S EPU LC HRAL I NS C RI PTION S

The form O f sepulchral inscri ptions varies conside rably the

1
Simplest of course being the si ngle name as
Aristylla
Sometimes the name is in the genitive case a word such as

lm or 6 7 1 M be i ng i n the mind O f the stone cutte r

A longe r
3;
form gives the woman s name with that of her father or hus

The name
band in the genitive as p r dpxn BovAdpxov
of a woman who was an At henian citizen and unm arried i s
commonly in scribed with her father s name and demotic a
married woman s wit h her husband s or with those of both
father and husband
These form s of course vari ed with
circumstances Among the early inscriptions i s this epitaph :
1
The stele of Eni alon daughter of Spoudi des the potte r
I nstead Of gravestones cippi serving to mark 0 11 the land set
aside for the grave are found as Boundary of the monument
of Glyke of M arathon who dwelt in the city the Sis te r of E8
Anothe r insc ription on a column
chati on son of
of Pente lic marble se rved the purpose O f both monument an d
As in the
boundary stone :
Philippe Emm enes
memorial of Glyke mentioned above a brot her s name some
times takes the place of the father s or i s given with it as in a
daughte r of Kothoki des
fragmentary i n scription to Tim
7
and siste r of Dem O phi los son of Kothoki des
Agai n a son s

An in sc ription from Roman

name i s occas ionally found
,

II
I 46 7

3504

for

Cf

Wilhelm

II

Beitrii ge

dierent reading
1 Suppl 507 b, p 120

3520
z ur

1
.

h
r
i
e
c
g

II

3500

Inschri ftenkun de pp
,

l ff

II

2 194

1
.

I Suppl 491
II v 1744b

11

1 17

A STUDY

or

WOME N IN ATTI C IN S CRIPTIONS

35

up by two sons : The Luci i Moun di kii Agathon

1
an d Herm aphilos to Elpis their mot her
Another rather
cu ri ous ins cription runs
The place of Nym phodos of Melite
an d of my mot he r Stratonike daughte r O f Eum achos of Kol
ly tos
Thi s enclosure and place belongs to my mother Strat
on i ke
On a stele of a woman named M a of the Ro m an
r
r
a
e
o
e
f
h
r
r
i
d
the
name
athe
r
hu
band
p
obably
s
f
r
o
e
o
s
p

t h e latter and of he r grand son

Ra re ly the mother s name is
1
fo und as
Arbouskla daughte r of Eirene
O n a stele of
a wom an who died in Rhodes far from he r home is ins c ribed
D amo an
Anothe r of the same pe riod h as the
i ns cription Epaph rodi tos in memory of his companion (0 1554340 8 )
1
Possibly both husband and wife were slaves
M arce lla
The word :15m occurs agai n on a stone i nscribed Eternal
7
Christian
d welling of Karpos and his companion K arpim e
to mbs were commonly designated as resti ng place s ; for ex
e
Re sting place of Kyriakos the stone cutter and Eu
am m
1
r
r
hemia
C
h
r
i
s
tian
and
ewi
s
h
g
ave
s
tone
a
re
o
f
ten
ma
ked
s
"
p
with symbols as the c ross and the seven branched candle
In only one containi ng the name of a woman is the
st ick
11
1
Christian
found
This gravestone and another
word
are marked with the sym bol composed of the lette rs P F E of
whi ch the meaning is not clearly unde rstood
Beside the simple i nscription merely identifying the deceased
there are m any whi ch include detai ls such as the occupation
age m an ner of death and when death h as come upon travelle rs
far from home the place where it occurred but m ostg pulchral
i nsc riptions of any length are expressions of aecti on fre
ti mes was

set

The fami ly of a priestess usually recorded

1

III

ii 297 3
III ii 3006
.

III

1
.

1
.

ii 35 10
.

ii 1866
XII i 388
III ii 3455
.

ofce upon her

1

1
.

III

he r

1
.

III ii 1510
III ii 3267

III

ii 3525
.

A STUDY O F WOME N

36

ATT I C IN SCRIPTIONS

IN

A priestess of Athen a
tomb as Euthydike prieste ss
Polias mentioned in another inscription has , under her name
with her father s name and demotic a key wound with llets

between two crowns as a symbol of her of ce

The crowns
may signify that she received honors from the people on two
occasions The key is also found on the monument of another
1
priestess whose name was Mneso
A certain Dai nes set up a
large column of Pentelic marble adorned with a relief of hi s
wife Parthenope a priestess of I sis holding the situla an d
1
sistrum
U pon the stele of Phan ostrate the wife of an Atheni an
citizen of Melite i s a verse
Phan ostrate a mi dwife an d
physician lies here to no one troublesome but lamented by
all at her death
A late inscription probably Chri s tian
i s also for a physician but apparently not a citizen : Re stin g
place of Sosanna physician and a fragm entary li ne ending
near the archangel
The stele of a deaconess bears in
faulty hexameter
I Ni kagora a deaconess lie here
Many epitaphs for nurses are known Some consist of the
1
1
on e word
N urse ;
others of Good nurse
but more
often we nd the n ame as Roxane daugh ter of Zopyrus of
10
Halai a nurse
A stone with a relief of a woman bears the
11
curious epitaph Excellent Sanno a good tumbler
Another
1
stele i s that of a salt vendor Eirene
an d a late i nsc ription
in iambics commemorates two sisters Eutychousa and Nai s
who were skilful musician s t rained to play the lyre and bar
11
biton
Only a few inscriptions give the cause of death An early
1

1
1

1
1
11

II

3691

111 ii 17 05
111 ii 1340
111 ii 3452

II
II

4 195

41 12

11

111 ii 1357
.

2 169

II

Cf Reli gi ous Associati ons ,

Cf Mi tth , 1898, p 420, note 3
1
II
2343
7
Cf O ccupati ons , p 3 1
111 ii 352 7
1 II
1
1
4 196 , 4 197
III ii 1457
11
Cf O ccupati ons , p 32
H I ii 1456
Cf O ccupati ons, p 32
1

su

m} "

or

WOME N m ATTI C IN SCRIPTIONS

37

xample i s I am th e monument of M yrrhi ne who died of

f
1
th e pl ague
One from Roman times commemorates Philox
2
A stone found in Piraeus bears three
e n e who died of old age
ve rse s a fragment of a longer in scription to a fathe r and his

so n an d daughter who were drowned in the Aegean

Two
women are recorded as having died in child birth ; B risei s and

Alexandrian and Krati sta who left a mothe rless child to her

h u sband
An epitaph in iambics touchingly expressed tells of the
death of a young Christian woman a lover of God
who
6
died leaving little children
Another found in Piraeus gives
i n a few li nes the history of a family : when her little son of
eight years old was drowned hi s mother Xenokleia died of
7
grief leaving two little daughters
The place where the death occurred i s mentioned naturally,
only when the cir cumstances are unusual The family wh o
were drowned in the Aegean presum ably whi le making a
8
voyage have alre ady been alluded to
A stele was erected
before the Persian wars by a husband for his wife Lam pi to
:1
8
who died far from home
The i nscription shows I onian
so we may suppose that Lam pi to and h er
characte rist ics
hus ban d were not Athenians Another found on Sunium and
belonging to the rst century A D comm emorates a woman
who lived at the court of Egypt She fell ill there and her
mother receivin g word of it went to Egypt from Athens to
bring her home but nding her dead could only give her a
tomb in the land of Kekrops instead of the Libyan sands
But few inscriptions contain a reference to the age of the
de ceased and nearly all of them belong to the Roman period

'

I 475
III ii
III ii
I 477
.

III

1320
1384

Cf

ii 13 13
.

Wilhelm
.

Beitrage

z ur

gri ech

125

Eph Ar ch , 1912 ,
II
3877
II v 4040b
.

III ii 1309
.

Inschriftenkunde pp
,

3311

A STUDY

38

WOME N m

or

INSCRIPTIONS

A Tl I C

One
date is for Hegi lla wife of Phi lagros of
Angele : All those of my age ought to attend : at twenty
ve I le ft the light of the sun
Of my character and tem
r
a
n
e
ce
my
hu
band
can
be
t
peak
A
yo
u
n
g
gi
l
r
s
s
s
un
p
2
ma rried described as a II po m Mow v died at fteen years
A fragmentary ve rse from the tomb of a wom an named Phoi be
8
gives her age as ni neteen
A stele beari ng a relief of a male
and a female head from the stoa of Hadrian is inscribed :
4
Fortunation sixty ve Faustina fourteen
Probably these
two were father and daugh te r A little girl Zm ym a who was
5
buried by her parents where three ways met died at six
Philete the slave of C laudia S abina lived four years and a

7
few months
D amo whose beauty of spirit incited all to
rival her died at twenty ve
Only a few epitaphs express any hope of a future life O ne
from the m i ddle of the fourth century ends with the words

8
Her body lies in the earth but her soul i s in O lympos
Another of the same century on a stele e rected by a wom an
Erxi s to a man whom she loved as well as her own chi ldren
expresses the belief that hi s soul leaving hi s body has gone
to Erebos where it joyfuy lives on ageless a privi lege gained

by his tempe rance during hi s earthly life

Three others date
from the Roman period
One of these stelae seems to have
stood on a cenotaph of a woman wh o died away from Athens
The last verse i s fragmentary but in it the words 4mm; an d
c tov can
aw
be distinguished The inscription for Phoi be
p
10
mentioned above contains the words giving her spirit to
the aether and her body to the land of Kekrops
A th ird
probably Christian was found on the Acropolis :
Lo ok
friend at the sacred be auty of the im mortal soul and body
of pre Roman
-

",

II
III
III

168 7

7
1

ii 1469
ii 1353
Cf , note 3
.

3
.

III
III
II
.

ii 1338
ii 1336
4307
.

III ii 1370
III ii 1464
II
3602
.

A STUDY

40

OE

WOME N IN ATTI C IN SCRIPTIONS

and wife tende rness to chi ld ren and to Old se rvants and which
exhibit an appreciation of the charm and sacredness O f youth
whi ch i s characteristic of all their art
Surely none of the epitaphs of women is more be autiful
than Phrasiklei a s from the si xt h century in which she says
I shall be called a maid forever for inst ead
to the passe r by :
A little
of marriage I re ce ived this n ame from the gods

m
c
e
d
w
a
s
se
r
ai
ted
tele
f
r
om
which
the
colo
rs
a
al
t
e
a
t
n
e
os
s
p
up ove r Anthemis by her girl companions in memory of her
goodness and friendshi p It antedates the Peloponnes ian
2
wars
Another bears the words : Here lies Ari stylla child
Prudent wert thou 0 daugh ter
of Ari ston and Rhodilla
A metrical in scription i s in form a dialogue between a hus band
and hi s dead wife i n which he expresses his love and his re gret
for her death while the wife answers Farewell dearest hus
Love my children
Another for a young girl says
d
that if any mortal creature could be counted among the
immortals surely to be thus numbered would have been her
but leaving the owery prime of youth and her
reward ;

mothe r s roof tree she has gone to Persephone s b ride ch amber

An inscription for a young wife Dionysia is somewhat amusi ng
She did not love ne raiment nor gold
i n i ts homelin ess

but her husband and her own sophrosyne

Another of an
even more Puritanic severity is that of Nikarete : An in
dustri ous and frugal woman lies here
A youn g woman who had shared in eve ry good granted to
happy mort als died leaving regret to those who loved her and

an e xample of sophrosyne to he r young friends

Hi ppostrate e rected a stele for her nurse Melitta daughte r
with a relie f representing them both and a
of an isotele s
verse :
He re the earth covers Hi ppostrate s good nurse
,

'

I 469
II
3931
II
40 14
.

I Suppl
II v 37 65
II i ii 3897

114

I Suppl
II
36 19
.

1 17

A STU DY

OF

WOME N m ATTI C INSCRIPTIONS

41

'

life I loved you nurse and still I honor

below
the
ea
th
and
s
ha
l
l
long
I
live
I
know
that
r
a
s
a
s
o
u
,
y
i f in the world below there is a reward for the good the greatest
will be bestowed upon you by Pe rse phone and Pluto
There i s an inscription of the early fourth century on a
stone from the Keram eikos whi ch was set up by a woman
Euthylla to her friend Biote in memory of her faithfulness
2
Probably both of the women were
and swee tness of nature
fore ign ers and perha ps fellow slaves as the word hetaira
found in the insc ription may have been used in that sense as

k ai pos was from early times

A truly gran diloquent epitaph in Homeric phras e was out
upon the stele O f Tryphera by order O f her hus ban d Eum eros
Th is lady who died at twenty ve was blessed with yellow
looks ; bright eyes with lovely eyelids and a face like snow
From her sweet mouth and purple lips her delicate voice issued
th rough ivory teeth all O f which charms we re united to vi rtue
Th is paragon was born to stalwart Eutychi des by charming

N ow I miss you ,

and in

Re markable for

yntax versicati on and matter i s the

The li nes are
e p itaph of Mi n ako without doubt a foreigne r
If anyone was ever 7
m utilated but the gene ral sense is plai n :
a truly good wom an I am so both for justice and for all othe r
s
s
f
s
r
od
qualitie
but
in
pite
thi
I
have
eceived
no
itable
o
o
s
u
g
neither from my parents nor from the gods I
re compense
r
r
away
f
om
my
mothe
and
f
athe
r
hiding
i
n
ilence
what
s
o
g
lo ve it was they gave me
Several late insc riptions composed by humble people prove
th at even at this time the art of saying much b riey and with
One of these
si mplicity had n ot been lost by the Athenian s
E pagathe who lived
i s for a Christian woman E pagathe :
s

II

C Poland, A " A , 1893 p 192

1
Cf Odyssey, XIV 407 , 413 ; XV 307
III ii 1376
II
Cf Lenormant, La voie sacre, pp 696
3959
.

27 29

A STUDY O F WOME N IN ATTI C INSCRIPTIONS

42

Two are children s epitaphs :

nobly lies here
For the
1
and This i s the monum ent
sake of Eirene an only chi ld
of the sweete st little daughter
M ost pathetic of all i s an
A servant worn out by toil regretted
i nscription for a slave :
by those who brought her up received this tomb when she
died
Among the sepulch ral in scriptions are to be found several
t o well kn own pe rson s and a number to members of famili es of
consequence in th eir tim e A few of these are of special i n
The earliest dates from the fth century It i s a
te rest
small whi te marble tablet with painted gures of a young m an
and a little girl The names Lysim achos Polykri te were
carefully engraved above and at the side of the gures and the
lette rs were reddened Polykri te was the granddaughte r of
Aristides as Plutarch tells us who died a poor man and was
buried at the expen se of the city Hi s daughters were portioned
and to hi s son Lysim ach os an allowance was made at the
in stance of Alcibiades When Lysim achos died leaving a
daughter Polykri te the city granted her the same right of
maintenance as to victors in the Olympian gam es It would
seem that she died as a child pe rhaps at the same tim e as h er

brother Lysim achos as they are represented together

Stelae of the mother Kalli strate and the sister M elitta

1
O f the young knight D exileos
of Thorikos are known
With
those of other members of the same family they st and near
the well kn own relief within the family enclosure in the Kera

A
t

m eikos

f
r
i
f
o
s
f
r
h
A
agment
tone
ound
nea
the
emain
om
K
e
ssos
r
f
r
s
5
p
the stele of Re gilla the wife of Herodes Atticus In the
l mutilated lin es we can see traces of the extravagan t lan guage
.

111 ii 3528
III ii 1312
.

3 112

Re adi ng

111 ii 13 10
114 ; Plutarch , A ri sti des,
7
II
2091
.

I Suppl 491
II
2088
.

III

uncertain

11

II

2 184

A STU DY O F WOME N IN ATTI C IN S CRIPTIONS

in which it was cou ched ; the

43

the earth and the broad

heaven s the races of men O f articulate S peech tree s and springs
1
In a
are to be witnesses pe rhaps of h e r h usband s regret
dierent Spot was found a complete in
scription warning vio
lators from her tomb It begin s Appia Annia Re gilla wife of
Herod es the light of the house
and con sists of curses in the
n am e of gods and he roes again st any pe rsons who may disturb
the tomb or i ts adornments and blessin gs upon those who
2
A fragment of marble
respect it and upon thei r Offspring
furnish es the beginning of the epitaph O f Re gilla s daughter
1
Elpin ike
Both of these women were honored by in scriptions
a nd statues at O lympia and se ve ral of the former in compli

m ent to Re gi lla are known from Attica

O ur inte rest i n a sm all group of in scription s centres in the
n ames O f the sculpto rs who we re employed to make statues
for the monument on which they were engraved
The most
i nteresting of these i s on a large basis found in the precinct
O f Athena Ergane which bears the name s of ve membe rs of
a family
includin g th ree women in the relation of mother
d augh ter and granddaughter
It was orn amented with statues
by Leo chares and Sthenn i s a sculptor of lesser reputation
In the Augustan age the statues were probably altered to
represent othe r pe rs on s and again i n the tim e of Trajan an
i ns cription in hi s honor was placed on the reverse of the stones
1
an d the statues we re pe rhaps alte red a second tim e
Fi nally mention may be made here O f the Tituli M emoriales
S i nce some O f the in sc ription s so classied by Di tten be rger are
apparently of decease d pe rson s though
comm emorative
5
others perhaps refer to the living One remarkable in form
an d somewhat uncertain of meaning i s from the temple O f
Aphrodite on the road to Eleusis :
M arcus O rbi us com
sun ,

1
1

III
H

i i 1333
.

1395

III ii 3823
.

III

Cf Leowy ,
.

ii 14 17
.

Cf Honorary ,
B ildhauer, 83
1

Ins chrift

gr

pp

9, 16

A STUDY

44

or

WOME N IN ATTI C INSCRIPTIONS

The gentile name O rbi us

i s written in Roman characte rs but the rest of the in script ion
i s i n Gree k
The phrase w m os seems here to be equivalent
to our formulas with best wishes
with kind regards or
1 4 00 2: is
pe rhaps for good luck
I t as well as the plural
7
found probably as a wish for good fortune on gold rings from
1
Cyprus ; and with the meani ng for the benet of
of ad
"
vantage to it i s familiar from lite rature

m em orates Pythonik e w dya dc

Hdbk

4 107 , 4 109
1

Thuc

of

Cypri ote C oll i n

.

Metropoli tan Museum of Art, NOS

5 2 7 ; Arist
.

Frogs, vs 14853
.

APPE N D I X

ASSO CI ATI O NS AND P UBLI C HONO RS

RELI GI O US

II

i 163, 374, 37 5, 420, 477 , 550, 564, 58 1, 6 17 , 6 19, 622 6 24, 627 , 631,
453b, 57 3b
-

II ii 7 52 7 58, 956 , 957 , 983, 984, 987 989 1036, 834b, 957 b
-

II

1160 , 1204 , 1322 , 1355, 1366 , 1369, 137 6 1392 , 1394 1396 ,

1399, 140 1 , 1402, 1408, 1410, 14 11, 1413 1416, 1419, 1433 , 1532 ,
-

1541, 1548, 156 1, 1570, 157 1, 1582 , 1586 , 1590, 1591, 16 16 , 2 169,

3691, 3989, 1388b, 1392b

II v
.

104a, 3 14C , 407 g, 47 7 d , 6 18b, 620b, 834b, 1205b, 1233c, 1380b,

140 1b, 1406 c, 153 1b

III

Add 1620n

i 3, 5, 6 , 29, 63, 94 , 1 12 , 16 1, 162 , 164, 2 18, 220, 230, 232 , 3 12 ,

.

3 13, 3 15 , 3 16 , 3 18 , 3 19 322 , 324 , 325, 327 , 33 1 , 333, 335 345,

348 354 , 356 36 1, 365, 367 370 , 37 2 37 6 , 37 9 384, 454, 525,

547 , 549, 556 , 57 8, 6 15, 6 16 , 622, 647 , 652 , 655, 674 , 679, 683,
686 , 7 17 , 7 83, 784, 806 , 8 16 , 827 , 828, 836 , 838 , 844 , 865 887 ,

889 895, 897 904, 906 924, 926 929 , 932 942 , 981, 1296 , l 74a,

222a, 46 1a, 578a, 6 19b, 822a, 824e , 836b, d ,

920a, 928a, 942a,

965C, 1280a

III ii 1340, 1450, 386 1, 3862

D i tt , 394, 397 , 398, 593
.

pp

1895,

E ph Arch

1894,

113, 130, 134

pp

1904,

14, 19, 20 , 22 , 34 ; pp
n os 12 , 14, 15 , 23, 26 ; 1897 ,

nos

26 , 30 , 34 ; 1895 , pp

nos 18, 23 32 , 49 ; 1899,

pp

B C H
.

894a, 903a, 906a,

e,

pp

pp
no

nos

nos

9 ; 1906 ,

pp

20, 31, 39, 49 ; 1900 ,

194 ; 191 1, p 26 1
.

D ED I C ATIONS
O nly
t he

such

i nscri ptions

place of discovery

I 350, 389, 400

1
I Suppl : 37 3
.

373w ( p

to

proved by the
dedi cati ons to a di v ini ty

i n cluded

re er

to

as are

con tent or

v 11 '

7 7 : 11 : 1 11 :
11

are

37 3

p
(

37 3

157

pp
(
p
(

11

45

p
(

80
11 11 17 1

37 3

p
(

II
II

UDY

46
i 403
.

ST

WOME N IN ATTI C INS CRIPTIONS

OF

649, 65 1, 652 , 654, 657 , 660 6 62 , 666 , 667 , 67 3, 67 5, 694, 698,

706 , 7 17 , 7 20, 7 22, 737 , 7 5 1, 7 52 , 7 54 7 66 , 7 68 77 6 , 8 13, 835

837 , 839, 853 , 7 7 6b

II

iii 1327 , 1355, 137 9 138 1, 1383 1387 , 1389 1392 , 1399, 1409, 14 13,

14 14, 1420 , 1428 , 1433, 1434, 1452 , 1453, 1460, 146 1, 1482, 1485,
1491, 1492 , 1494, 1497 , 1505, 1506 , 15 13, 15 17 , 1539, 1556 , 1557 ,

1559, 1560 , 1565 , 1567 , 1569, 157 2 , 157 8, 157 9, 1585 1588 , 1590,

1591, 1593, 1594 , 1598, 1599, 160 1, 1603, 1604 , 1609, 16 13, 1620,
1392b, 1565b, 157 1b, 157 9b

II v
.

67 20 , 7 67 b, 7 68b,

7 69b, 7 7 1b, 77 2b, 7 7 3b, 7 7 5b,

0,

c,

d , 77 60 ,

1205b, 1380b, l 426b, 151 10 , l 53l b, 15500 , 15580 , d, g,

1559b, 156 1e

m,

III

94 , 13 1 136 , 146 , 147 , 150 156 , 162 , 164, 180 , 186 , 191, 193,

204, 205, 2 18, 220, 7 20, 7 33, 8 15 , 828, 836 , 840 , 888 , 896 , 902 ,

905, 910 , 911 , 914, 918, 919, 925, 930, 93 1, Add 130a, 132g,
.

18 1e , 185a, 238b, 836a,

" H S , 1908, p 301

Eph Arch , 1892, p 54 ,
.

207 ,

30, 31, 34,

pp

no

no

l,

89 ;

1894,

p 109 no
35 ; 1899 pp
191 1 p 7 9 (cf p

30 ; 1895 ,

166 ,

23 ; 1897 ,

nos

no

pp

199,

nos

31

24 26 , 29

6;

no

12 ,

18, 24, 25,

40, 49 ;

1903,

TABELLAE DEFIXIO NUM

III

3, 8 10, 12 15, 17 , 19, 22, 24 , 30, 37 , 39, 42, 43, 46, 54 , 55 , 57

59, 64, 67 6 9, 7 1 7 3, 7 5 78 , 82 , 84, 87 , 89 91, 93, 95, 97 , 100, 102 ,

12 1 123,

106 108, 116 ,

169, 174, 17 5 , 183, 203

142 , 145, 160 , 162 , 165 ,

BOU N DARY I NSCRI PTI ONS

II

1067 , 1105 , 1109, 1 1 13, 1124, 1 128, 1132, 1 137 , 1 149, 1 150, 1 152

II

III

v
.

1 1420 , d ,

i 6 1, 4 13
.

TRA DES AND O CC UPATI ONS

1 Suppl 373

11

II

p
(

7 72 7 7 4, 7 7 6 , 834b

A STUDY

48

or

WOME N

IN

ATTI C INSCRIPTI ONS

2582 , 2586, 2590, 2592, 2594 2597 , 2600, 2601, 2605, 261 1, 26 15,
-

26 16 , 2618, 262 1, 2622 , 2624, 2626, 2631, 2634 , 2636 , 2638 2640,
-

2643 2645, 2648, 2650, 2654, 2659, 266 1 2664, 2670, 267 2, 2674,
-

267 5, 2680 , 2682 , 2685 , 2687 , 2691 2693, 2697 , 2698, 27 0 1, 27 10

-

2 7 16 , 2724 , 27 29, 27 3 1, 2916 , 2964, 3006 , 3062 , 3142 , 3 173, 3215,

32 18, 3333, 3395, 3399, 3425 3427 , 3429, 3434, 3436 , 3438, 3439,

3441, 3442 , 3445 3447 , 3450 , 3453, 3456 , 3457 , 3459 346 1, 3463,

3464, 3466, 3467 , 347 1, 3475 , 347 6, 3478 348 1, 3483, 3484 , 3486

3488, 3490, 3491, 3494 3501, 3503 3506 , 35 10 35 13, 3515 3522 ,

3524 , 3525, 3527 3529, 353 1 3534, 3536 3538 , 3540 3544, 3547

3549, 3551 3554 , 3557 , 3559, 3560 , 3562 , 3563, 3569, 357 1 3580,
3583 3585, 3587 , 3592 3600 , 3602 , 3607 36 13, 36 15, 3618, 3619,
-

3628, 3633, 3638, 3639, 3642 , 3643 , 3647 , 3648, 3650 3652 , 3656
-

3659, 366 1, 3664, 366 7 , 367 1, 3673, 3674, 367 7 , 368 1, 3685 3687 ,
-

3690 3692, 3694, 3695, 3697 37 08, 37 11, 37 12 , 37 17 37 19, 37 2 1,

-

3722 , 37 24 3726 , 37 29, 373 1, 3735, 37 36 , 3741 3743 , 3746 , 3749,

-

37 5 1 3763, 37 65 37 67 , 3772 377 8, 3780 , 378 1, 37 84 37 91, 37 98

3803 , 3807 , 38 10 38 17 , 382 1, 3824 3832, 3836 3840, 3842, 3846 ,

3848, 3854, 3856, 3858 3868, 3870 3879, 3885 , 3886 , 3889 3892 ,
-

3894, 3896 3898, 3902 , 3903, 3907 3910, 3912 3917 , 3919, 3922 ,

3923, 3928 3932 , 3935, 3936 , 3939, 3940, 3943 3946 , 3948, 3950,

3951, 3952 , 3954, 3955 , 3958 , 3959, 396 1 3963 , 3967 397 0, 397 3,

3974, 398 1, 3982 , 3984 3996 , 3998 4004, 4007 40 1 1, 4014 4017 ,
-

4044 4047

40 19 4025, 4028 403 1, 4039, 4042 ,

-

4050 4055 , 4063 ,

-

4067 , 407 2 4075, 408 1 4083, 4085, 4088 , 4095 4098, 4 10 1, 4 102 ,

4 104, 4105, 4 107 4110 , 4 112 , 4 113, 4 118 4 12 1, 4 125, 4 130, 4132 ,
-

4 136 4 140, 4144, 4 146 , 4150, 4153 4 155 , 4157 4 16 1, 4 163 , 4167 ,
-

4 168 , 4 17 0, 417 1, 4 18 1 , 4 182 , 4 186, 4193 4197 , 4200, 4202 , 4204

-

4209, 42 12 42 19, 4221, 4223 4225,

-

4229 4235

4237 , 4238, 4240,

4242 4245, 4249 4 255, 42 57 , 4259 4263, 42 65 4268, 427 0, 427 2

427 6, 4279, 4283 429 1, 4293 4295, 4297 , 4302 , 4306 4308, 43 16 ,

4320, 2 163b, 2459b, 2545b, 27 16b, 3291b, 410 1b

II v
.

107 1b,

1893b,

0,

1682b,

1916b,

c,

1707 0 , 1744b, 1806b,

l 9l 8b,

1945b,

1998b,

0,

1827 b, 1840b, 186 1b,

2oo3h,

0,

2004b,

20 47b,

d , 2 139b, 2 169b, 2 l 7 1b, 2 175b, 2 184b, 2240b, 2270b,

2280b, 2338b, 2343b, 237 1b, 2406b, 2439b, 2459b, 2482b, 2492b,

2048b,

0,

2580 , 2580b, 26520 , 2653b, 267 1b, 3445b, 3449b, 3468b,

3498b,

3523b, 3534b, 3544b, 3552b, 3553b, 3578b, 357 9b,

3580b, 3591b, 3596b, 3598b, 3647 b, 3654b, 3677b, 3686b, 3691b,
35o1b,

0,

37 08b, 37 15b, 37 16b, 37 17 b, 37 22b, 373 1b, 37 50b, 37 55b, 37 57 b,

A STUDY

OF

WOME N

IN

ATTI C INSCRIPTIONS

49

37 65 , 377 6b, 37 90b, 3798b, 38 14b, 3817 b, 38 190 , 382 1b, 3837b,
3856b,
38585 , c, 38655 , c, 3888b, 38985 , 39000 , d , 39035 ,
39325 , 39505 , 39925 , 40035 , 40 105 , 40245 , 4040 5 , 40465 , 407 25 ,
407 55 , 4097 5 , 410 15 , 41045 , 41135 , 41145 , 41355 , 41585 , 41905 ,

41935 , 42085 , 42095 , 422 15 , 42345 , 42405 , 42495 , 42 545 , 427 15 ,

Add 2 1305 , 34865 , 35915 , 36085 , 37355 , 37 915 ,

38560 , 3911b, 3970b, 407 10 , 418 1b, 4253b, 427 7 b
III
1309, 1310, 1312 , 13 13, 1316 , 13 19 1321, 1324 , 1330, 1333,
42785 , 42845

1336 , 1338 , 1340, 1346 , 1348 , 1353 , 1355, 1357 , 1364, 1367 , 1370,
137 2 , 1376 , 1380 , 1383 , 1384, 1387 , 1390, 1394 , 1400, 1417 , 1423,

1429, 1430, 1445 , 1456 1458 , 1463, 1464, 1469, 1474, 1480, 1482

1486 ,

1488,

1489,

1494 ,

1496 ,

1498 ,

1503,

1505,

1508 15 1

0,

15 12 15 14 , 15 18 , 15 19, 1523, 1525 1527 , 1530, 1541, 1546, 1549

155 1, 1553 , 1554, 1557 , 156 1, 1562 , 1564 , 1565, 1567 , 1568 , 1570,
157 2, 1577 , 158 1, 1586 , 1593, 160 1, 1607 1609, 16 14, 16 16 , 16 18,

162 1, 1625 , 1629, 1633 , 1636 , 1637 , 1639, 1640 , 1647 , 165 1, 1666 ,
1669, 167 0, 1673, 1674, 167 6 , 1682 , 1694, 1696, 1698, 17 05, 17 10,
17 11, 17 14, 17 18, 1720 , 17 22 , 17 25, 1729, 1732 , 1735 17 37 , 1740

1744, 1748, 1749, 17 5 1, 17 52 , 17 55 , 17 60 17 62 , 17 66 , 17 68 , 17 69,

17 7 5, 17 7 7 17 7 9, 178 1 1783 , 17 86 1788 , 17 90 , 1795 17 97 , 17 99,

1805, 1806 , 1808, 18 1 1, 18 13, 1820, 1822 , 1827 , 183 1, 1833, 1835,
1838, 1843 1845, 1853 , 1854 , 186 1, 1862 , 1864 , 1866 , 1868 , 1870,

190 1, 1902 , 1906, 1909, 1914 ,

1888,

1915, 192 1 , 1923, 1927 , 1928 , 1930, 1936 , 1940 , 1945, 1947 , 1948,
1950, 195 1, 1953, 1955, 1956 , 1959, 1966 , 1968 , 1970 , 1973, 1974,
1978 1980, 1985 , 1987 1989, 1995, 1999, 2002 , 2003, 2006, 20 12 ,
-

2022 , 2027 , 2033, 2038, 2043, 205 1, 2052 , 2055 2057 , 2060 , 2062

2064, 2069, 2073, 207 5 , 207 7 207 9, 2082 , 2084, 2086 2088, 2091

2093 , 2095, 2096 , 2 103 2 107 , 2 1 10, 2 1 13, 2 1 18, 2119, 2 12 1, 2 122 ,
-

2 127 , 2 130 , 2 13 1, 2 133, 2 134 , 2 136 , 2 140 220 1, 296 1, 2963, 2966 ,

2968 297 1,

297 3 ,

297 5,

297 7 ,

297 8,

298 1 ,

2983 ,

2985 ,

2987

2989, 2995 , 3002 , 3006 3008, 30 10 , 30 11, 30 13, 302 1 , 3022 , 3026
-

3029, 303 1 3037 , 3042 , 3043, 3046 , 3047 , 3050, 3055 3057 , 3059,

3065 , 307 2 307 7 , 308 1, 3085 3088 , 3091, 3093 , 3094, 3 10 1, 3103,

3 104 , 3 107 , 3 108, 3 110 3 1 19, 3 12 1, 3 127 3 133, 3 139, 3 140, 3 145,
3149 3152 , 3 154 3 157 , 3 160 3 163, 3 165 , 3 166 , 3 17 0 3 173 , 3 17 8 ,

3 182 , 3 183 , 3 185, 3 186 , 3 187 , 3 194, 3 195 , 3200 , 3203 3205 , 3209,

32 11 32 15 , 3224, 3225, 323 1, 3232 , 3235 , 3238, 3239, 3242 3244 ,

3246 , 3248 325 1, 3257 , 326 1, 3262 , 3265, 3267 3270, 3274, 327 7

327 9, 3282 , 3285, 3290, 3291, 3293 3296 ; 3302, 3303, 3307 , 33 12 ,

UDY O F WOME N IN ATTIC I NS CRIPTIONS

50

ST

3314, 33 15 , 3320, 3322 , 3325 , 3330, 3332 , 3336 3339, 3345 , 3346 ,

3349, 3353, 3356 , 3357 , 3359 336 1, 3365 3368 , 3370 , 337 8 , 338 1,

3386 3389, 3393, 3396 , 3399 3401, 3407 , 3409, 34 14, 34 15, 3420

3423, 3425 , 342 7 3429, 3433, 3436 , 3442 , 344 6 , 344 7 , 3452, 3455
-

3462 , 3464, 347 0 347 5, 347 7 , 347 9 3485 , 3487 , 3505 , 3509, 35 10 ,

35 14, 15 18 3523 , 3525, 3527 3529, 3532 , 3533, 3537 , 3538, 3545 ,

3688 , 37 10 , 37 22 , 37 32 , 37 55 , 37 7 7 , 37 89, 37 98 , 3823, 3824 , 3826 ,

1635a, 165 1a, 17 38a, 2o46a, 2 168a, 2 97 4a, 2986a, 3 104a, 3244a,

327 5a, 35 16a

p 192
Delti on 189 1 pp 1 14 122
n os 8
E ph Arch 1893 pp
11 15 17 19 26 32 35 36 ;
1895 p 185 ; 1902 p 143 ; 1904 p 82 nos 1 3 ; 1910 pp
nos 1 3 7 ; pp
nos 10 15 18 19 ; 19 1 1 p 24 1 no XV II ;
p 252 ; 1912 p 124
Handbook of the C lassi cal C ollecti on Metropoli tan Muse um of Art
A " A
.

1893,

No 10 (Accessi on No
.

No 59 (Accession No

U NC LASS I F I ED

47 3

I Supp 558

(p

II i 548
II i ii 1521 1555
II v l 038b
III i 55 60 128
.

III i i
.

541 543, 680 , 7 00 70 1, 7 3 1, 99 1, 1283 , 7 12a, 7 68 a

-

1329, 1335, 1350 , 1368, 1390 , 1405 , 14 14, 1445, 1450, 3362,

Eph Arch
.

3863 , 387 9, 3880 , 3946 , 3947

1589, 16 11 , 16 18, 3587

1 1 1,

nos

1894 ,
no

27

12 , 33, 4 1

182 ,
1897 ,

no

25 ;

pp

185,

nos

no

3 1 ; 1895,

10 1,

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