ATHENIAN DEATH AND FUNERARY CUSTOMS
Much unlike Sparta, Athenians found death unsettling but important, and they respected the dead through funerary practices that had been used since Greece began.
The ritual that followed a death in an Athenian family took place over several days. To all Athenians it is very important that the dead are not forgotten.
The funeral procedure, known as the 'kedeia', consisted of three main parts. The first was the prothesis, which was the laying out of the body. Second was the ekphora, the transportation of the body to its place of burial. The final part was the deposition of the body in its grave.
The death of a family member offered a chance to show wealth, family pride and family bonding. As well as a time of grief, it was also a time to show others how rich they were.
In the prothesis, the body was washed, anointed with oil and dressed by the women of the household. The deceased was then laid out on a bed in a room in the house of his next-of-kin (often his son), with feet facing the door. At this time, family and friends were able to say a last good-bye. Women, dressed in black and with their hair shorn, often stood over the dead body where they lamented and mourned. Occasionally, female professionals were hired to sing poignant laments, giving to the ceremony
something of the air of a theatrical performance.
Since death itself was thought of as a kind of pollution, a basin of water was often placed outside the door of the house, to warn others of the potential for pollution and for visitors to the house to purify themselves.
For city-dwelling Athenians, the dead were always buried outside town, symbolically separating them from the world of the living. The dead were either inhumed or cremated. When cremated, the ashes were placed in an urn and buried. Offerings were made to the dead and libations of wine and oil were poured out in their honor. A feast for those involved in the funeral was also a regular part of the ritual.
Graves were marked with plaques of stone or wood depending on a family's wealth. It was the custom to perform further rituals on the ninth day after the burial, and then annually thereafter.
The ritual that followed a death in an Athenian family took place over several days. To all Athenians it is very important that the dead are not forgotten.
The funeral procedure, known as the 'kedeia', consisted of three main parts. The first was the prothesis, which was the laying out of the body. Second was the ekphora, the transportation of the body to its place of burial. The final part was the deposition of the body in its grave.
The death of a family member offered a chance to show wealth, family pride and family bonding. As well as a time of grief, it was also a time to show others how rich they were.
In the prothesis, the body was washed, anointed with oil and dressed by the women of the household. The deceased was then laid out on a bed in a room in the house of his next-of-kin (often his son), with feet facing the door. At this time, family and friends were able to say a last good-bye. Women, dressed in black and with their hair shorn, often stood over the dead body where they lamented and mourned. Occasionally, female professionals were hired to sing poignant laments, giving to the ceremony
something of the air of a theatrical performance.
Since death itself was thought of as a kind of pollution, a basin of water was often placed outside the door of the house, to warn others of the potential for pollution and for visitors to the house to purify themselves.
For city-dwelling Athenians, the dead were always buried outside town, symbolically separating them from the world of the living. The dead were either inhumed or cremated. When cremated, the ashes were placed in an urn and buried. Offerings were made to the dead and libations of wine and oil were poured out in their honor. A feast for those involved in the funeral was also a regular part of the ritual.
Graves were marked with plaques of stone or wood depending on a family's wealth. It was the custom to perform further rituals on the ninth day after the burial, and then annually thereafter.