G R E 
employed in more pcrifliing, as well as more criminal, 
hixurv. The pomp of religious folemnities, wliich 
were twice as numerous and as colily in Atliens as in any 
Other city of Greece ; tlie extravagance of public enter¬ 
tainments and banquets, which on fuch occafions always 
followed the facrifices ; the increafe of private luxury, 
which naturally accompanied this profufion, alike contri¬ 
buted to exhauft the refources, without augmenting the 
glory, of the republic. Dramatic entertainments formed 
an elTential part of the folemn feftival confecrated to Mi¬ 
nerva, who had given her peculiar protection to the city 
of Athens. Jupiter enjoyed his appropriated honours; 
but more commoidy, as is attefted by Atlienian medals, 
the wortliip of the f.ither of tlie gods was alTociated 
with that of his warlike daughter; and with the myf- 
teries of Ceres, who taught the Athenians the valuable 
knowledge of agriculture, which they werefuppofed to 
have diffufed over the ancient world. It would be end- 
lefs to mention the inflitutions in honour of the crowd 
of inferior divinities, which rendered the feftivals at 
Athens twice more nunigrous than in any other Grecian 
city. Nor did the frequency abate the extenfive fplen- 
dour wliich accompanied them. The fhops and courts 
of juftice were fhut ; the mechanic quitted his tools, 
the hiilbandman ceafed from his labours, the mourner 
intermitted his forrow. The whole city was dilTolved 
in feafling and joy ; the intervals of which were filled 
up by pompous ihpvvs and procefllons, by concerts of 
nuific, by exhibitions of painting ; and at feveral fefri- 
vals, particularly the Panathenasan, by hearing and judg¬ 
ing the noblefl: produftions of eloquence and poetry. 
It feems indeed extraordinary, that the revenues of 
Athens, notwithftanding their inijirovement by Pericles, 
fiiould have fufficed for this multitude of expences. 
But we mull: confider that the general fimplicity of 
manners in private life, formed a firiking contralt with 
the extravagance of public feftivals and anuifements. 
The houfes and tables of the moft wealthy Athenians 
were little diftinguiflied above thofe of their pooreft 
neighbours. Pericles himfelf, though never fufpeffed 
of avarice, lived with il',e exaiieft ceconomy; and the 
fuperabundance of private wealth, which would have 
created envy and danger to the owner, if he had em¬ 
ployed it for his particular convenience and pleafure, 
procured him public honour and efteem, when expend¬ 
ed for the gratification of the multitude; and, in gene¬ 
ral, diftinguiflied obfequies at his death. 
To perform the funeral rites w'as confidered fo facred, 
that they who negledled to difeharge this office, were 
thought accurfed. They believed that their fouls 
could not be admitted into the Elyfian (hades, till their 
bodies were depofited Ln the earth ; and if thefe rites 
were altogether omitted, that they would be excluded 
for an hundred years, f Hmer. OdyJJ. A. v. 66, 72.) Hence, 
of all the curfes, that was the greateft, that a perfon 
might die without the honours of burial : and of all 
deaths, that by ftiipwreck was deemed the moft terri¬ 
ble ; fee p. 892. Thus, if they were in danger of being 
caft away, it was ufual to faften the moft valuable ftores 
round their middle, with a direffion to thofe who might 
find tlie body, if it (hould be caft upon fliore, to give them 
human burial, and offering their (fores as a compenfa- 
tion for the trouble. In any cafe, it was confidered 
not only an aft of the greateft inhumanity to neglefl to 
perform thefe offices, but a crime fufficient to provoke 
the vengeance of tlie infernal gods. He who thus of¬ 
fended was deemed i rofane and polluted, till he had 
fubniiited to the accultomed purifications, and appealed 
the incenfed gods. It was not required, in all cafes, 
that the folemnities ftiould be ftriftly performed; for if 
a traveller was in unufual hafte, it was fufficient to caft 
three handfuls of (oft earth upon the carcafe, one of 
which was to be tlirown upon the head. If the body 
of any perfon had been interred in hafte, and it was af¬ 
terwards found by any of his friends, it was honoured 
with a fecoad funeral. (Virg. jThi, 3. v, 62 and 67.) It 
E C E. yo 9 
w'as thought to be a great misfortune, if tlieir bodies 
iiad not been prepared for burial by their relations, and 
interred in the fepultures of their family. The allies of 
thofe who died in a foreign country were ufualiy 
brought home, .and interred in the fepulchre of their 
anceftors. This pious care of the bodies of their dead 
was extended alfo to (laves ; and was efteemed fo ne- 
celfary, that the candidates for the magiftracy at Athens 
were examined, as to the due celebration of the fune¬ 
rals, and proper care of the monuments, of their rela¬ 
tions. It was alfo a grievous crime to be gay and 
cheerful before the ufual time of mourning expired. 
The perfons of the priefts who officiated at funerals 
were highly refpedted, and their goods were regarded 
v/itii religious veneration. (Plutarch. Greec. Ouajl. 21.) 
There were fome crimes, however, which were fo hei¬ 
nous, as to prevent the perfons guilty of them from all 
rites of burial. Public or private enemies were deemed 
unworthy of partaking of this privilege. {Homer II, v.) 
Thofe who were confpirators or traitors to their coun¬ 
try, were excluded from the rites of burial ; thofe who 
refufed to aft in defence of their country in times of ex¬ 
tremity ; tyrants, vdio w ere pronounced enemies to their 
country ; perfons guilty of filicide ; and perfons guilty 
ot facrilege, were threatened with this puniftiment. Per¬ 
fons, killed by lightning, were buried apart by them- 
felves, being thought hateful to the gods; or left in the 
place where they died. Some fay, they had no inter¬ 
ment, but were fufl'ered to rot where they fell, which 
was hedged in to prevent others from contrafting pol¬ 
lution from it ; as were all places which had been 
ftruck with thunder. Thofe who wafted their patri¬ 
mony were denied the right of being buried in the fe¬ 
pulchre of their fathers. The bodies of thofe who died 
in debt belonged to their creditors, and were refufed 
burial, till fatisfaftion was made. Some criminals who 
luft’ered capital puniftiment were deprived of burial ; 
thofe who died upon the crofs or were impaled, were 
allowed frequently to be devoured by birds or bealts of 
prey. If the carcafe w'as fpared by the beads, it com¬ 
monly remained upon the crofs till it was putrified. In 
fome places it was ufual to inter the bodies of infants 
who had no teeth, without confuming them to allies. 
If thofe who had incurred public hatred had obtained 
the rites of burial, it was ulual to leap upon their 
tombs, and to caft ftOnes at them, in token of their ab- 
horrence. They frequently dragged facrilegious per. 
(ons from their graves, after they had been decently in¬ 
terred. Traitors, who had been buried, were again 
taken from their tombs; and the bones of tyrants w'ere 
feldom fuft'ered to reft in the grave. {Plutarch. Dione. 
Euripid. Med. 1378.) 
Yet, amidft all thefe attentions to perfons deceafed, 
and amid this refinement intafte and fplendour, the cha- 
radler and condition of the Grecian women prefent the 
moft (hiking contrail of any to be met with in hiftory. 
If we knew not the conlideration in which the fair fex 
were anciently held in Greece, and the advantages 
which they enjoyed at Sparta, after the laws of Lycur- 
gus had revived the inftitutions of the heroic ages, we 
(hould be apt to fufpecl that the ungenerous treatment 
of the feebler fex, which afterwards fo univerfally pre¬ 
vailed, had been derived from the Egyptian and-Alia- 
tic colonies, which early fettled in that part of Europe. 
Excluded from focial intercourfe, which nature had 
fitted them to adorn, the Grecian women were rigo- 
roufly confined to the moft retired apartments of the 
family, and employed in the meaneft ofiices of domeftic 
drudgery. It was thought indecent for them to ven¬ 
ture abroad, unlefs to attend a procellion, to accompany 
a funeral, or to affift at certain other religious folemni¬ 
ties. Even on thefe occafions, their behaviour was at- 
tentively watched, and often malignantly interrupted. 
The moft innocent freedom was conftrued into a breach 
of decorum ; and their reputation, once fullied by the 
flighteft imprudence, could never afterwards be re¬ 
trieved. 
