Monday, 19 October 2015

The Athenian or Attic Calendar

Extract from Aristophanes Clouds

Aristophanes The Clouds, Hayes Barton Press ISBN 978-1-59377-246-8

Aristophanes, Clouds, line 607 - 626 - in Greek

Complete Works of Aristophanes, The Clouds lines 615-30: Lulu.com, pp. 180–, ISBN 978-0-557-78159-1

LEADER OF SECOND SEMI-CHORUS
As we were preparing to come here, we were hailed by the Moon and were charged to wish joy and happiness both to the Athenians and to their allies; further, she said that she was enraged and that you treated her very shamefully, her, who does not pay you in words alone, but who renders you all real benefits. Firstly, thanks to her, you save at least a drachma each month for lights, for each, as he is leaving home at night, says, "Slave, buy no torches, for the moonlight is beautiful,"-not to name a thousand other benefits. Nevertheless you do not reckon the days correctly and your calendar is naught but confusion. Consequently the gods load her with threats each time they get home and are disappointed of their meal, because the festival has not been kept in the regular order of time. When you should be sacrificing, you are putting to the torture or administering justice. And often, we others, the gods, are fasting in token of mourning for the death of Memnon or Sarpedon, while you are devoting yourselves to joyous libations. It is for this, that last year, when the lot would have invested Hyperbolus with the duty of Amphictyon, we took his crown from him, to teach him that time must be divided according to the phases of the moon.

Aristophanes (2008). Clouds. Line 607- Richer Resources Publications. pp. 44–. ISBN 978-0-9797571-3-6.


CHORUS LEADER
When we were getting ready to move over here,
Moon met us and told us, first of all, to greet,
on her behalf, the Athenians and their allies.
Then she said she was upset—the way you treat her [610]
is disgraceful, though she brings you all benefits—
not just in words but in her deeds. To start with,
she saves you at least one drachma every month
for torchlight— in the evening, when you go outside,
you all can say, “No need to buy a torch, my boy,
Moon’s light will do just fine.” She claims she helps you all
in other ways, as well, but you don’t calculate
your calendar the way you should—no, instead
you make it all confused, and that’s why, she says,
the gods are always making threats against her,
when they are cheated of a meal and go back home
because their celebration has not taken place
according to a proper count of all the days.
And then, when you should be making sacrifice, [620]
you’re torturing someone or have a man on trial.
And many times, when we gods undertake a fast,
because we’re mourning Memnon or Sarpedon,
you’re pouring out libations, having a good laugh.
That’s the reason, after his choice by lot this year
to sit on the religious council, Hyperbolos
had his wreath of office snatched off by the gods.
That should make him better understand the need
to count the days of life according to the moon.

Indeed the Athenian festive calendar is a confusing matter and a highly controversial one.  At first sight it seems to have little mathematical, logical or even astronomical consistency. It did not follow any real logical pattern.This was perhaps because the festivities of Athens and the calendar which controlled them were a very large part of the business of the government of Athens. They were controlled by the Athenian state and its leaders (archontes), largely paid for by the state, and the Athenian people were hugely organised by the state and their tribes to participate in them. Therefore those in power could choose to manipulate the calendar whenever it suited them and for whatever reason they liked. perhaps the only limit on their power in this matter was that every citizen could look up at the evening sky on cloudless days and look out for the new moon and its first crescent light to see just how far those in power were manipulating the calendar.

The days when the festivities took place were determined by set days in the Athenian or Attic Festive Calendar. The New Year began in summer, technically defined as beginning in the evening following the first sighting of the new moon [noumenia], namely the first sighting of the moon's crescent after sunset  following the summer solstice [usually 21st June in the modern calendar, less often 20th or 22nd June]. The Attic year consisted of 12 lunar months [from new moon to new moon], with an occasional intercalary 13th month inserted to bring the calendar back into line with the solar year. Months were always either 29 or 30 days [hollow and full] which were meant to alternate every other month to keep up with the astronomical synodic month or lunar phase cycle [new moon to new moon]. The length of the mean synodic month (new moon to new moon) is 29.530588853 days (= 29d 12h 44m 03s). However, the length of any one synodic month can vary from 29.26 to 29.80 days due to perturbing effects of the Sun on the Moon's eccentric orbit  But those in power in Athenians often manipulated this cycle for their own purposes. The new moon [moon and sun conjuction] was thus was always meant to occur on the last or penultimate day of a month, but as a result of calendar manipulation this did not always happens.

The months of the Athenian calendar were given names after the principal festival held during that month. In order from the Athenian new year they were called Hekatombaion, Metageitnion, Boedromion, Pyanopsion, Maimakterion, Posideon, Gamelion, Anthesterion, Elaphebolion, Mounichion, Thargelion, and Skirophorion. During "leap years" with their additional intercalary month a second Poseidon month was added.

The Ancient Greeks had no conception of astrology. All the night sky did was to indicate to them the seasons and their changes.

Ancient Athenian Calendar for Dionysian Festivals Related to Drama

The ancient Athenians honored Dionysos, the god of wine and theater, with several key festivals throughout the year, many of which were central to the development and performance of Greek drama. The most important of these were the City (or Great) Dionysia and the Lenaia.

Key Dionysian Festivals for Drama

  • City Dionysia (Great Dionysia)

    • Timing: Held in the month of Elaphebolion (roughly late March to early April in the modern calendar)68.

    • Events: Featured processions, sacrifices, and, most notably, dramatic competitions. Three tragedians each presented a tetralogy (three tragedies and a satyr play) over three days. Later, five comedians each presented one comedy, usually on a separate day238.

    • Significance: This was the premier festival for dramatic performances in Athens, where the works of Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes debuted238.

    • Structure:

      • Day 1: Grand procession (pompe) and sacrifices68.

      • Days 2–4: Tragic competitions (three tragedies and a satyr play per day)238.

      • Day 5: Comic competition (five comedies)238.

      • Final day: Awards and celebrations68.

  • Lenaia

    • Timing: Held in the month of Gamelion (roughly January)12.

    • Events: Initially focused on comedy, with prizes for comic poets established in 442 BC. Tragedies were also performed, but comedies were more prominent than at the City Dionysia2.

    • Significance: Provided a second major opportunity for dramatic performances, especially for comedies2.

  • Rural Dionysia

    • Timing: Held in the month of Poseideon (roughly December), in the rural demes of Attica26.

    • Events: Included processions, sacrifices, and local performances of drama, often featuring traveling theater troupes26.

    • Significance: Allowed for broader participation in Dionysian worship and drama outside the city26.

Festival Calendar Overview

FestivalAncient MonthModern EquivalentMain Dramatic Events
LenaiaGamelionJanuaryComedy competitions, some tragedy12
Rural DionysiaPoseideonDecemberLocal performances, processions26
City DionysiaElaphebolionMarch–AprilTragedy and comedy competitions238

Dramatic Structure at the City Dionysia

  • Three playwrights selected by city officials.

  • Each presented three tragedies and a satyr play (the tetralogy) on a single day.

  • Five comedians (in later years) each presented one comedy, typically on a dedicated day.

  • Judging was performed by ten officials, one from each Athenian tribe3.

  • The festival concluded with the announcement of winners and the awarding of ivy wreaths68.

Cultural and Religious Context

  • The festivals were not only theatrical competitions but also religious celebrations, featuring processions, sacrifices, and communal feasting68.

  • The City Dionysia was especially significant for its civic and political importance, drawing large crowds and involving the participation of citizens, metics, and representatives from Athenian colonies68.

Summary

The ancient Athenian calendar for Dionysian festivals was centered on the Lenaia in January, the Rural Dionysia in December, and the City Dionysia in March–April. The City Dionysia was the most important for drama, featuring multi-day competitions in tragedy and comedy, and was a highlight of the Athenian religious and civic year2368.

  1. https://www.reddit.com/r/dionysus/comments/18am23q/dionysian_festival_calendar_for_2024/
  2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dionysia
  3. https://www.randolphcollege.edu/greekplay/ancient-greek-dramatic-festivals/
  4. https://ancienttheater.culture.gr/en/ekpaideftikoyliko/efarmoges/i-giorti-twn-megalwn-dionysiwn
  5. https://www.hellenion.org/festivals/dionysia-ta-astika/
  6. https://www.greeknewsagenda.gr/ancient-athenian-attic-festivals/
  7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athenian_festivals
  8. https://www.brown.edu/Departments/Joukowsky_Institute/courses/13things/7411.html




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