Boys leading sheep or rams to sacrifice

North Frieze, Parthenon, 442-438 B.C.E.

In this scene we are looking at the fourth slab of the North Frieze which represents actual events that would have taken place at the Feast of the Panathenaia. The section of the procession when four bulls and four rams are brought to sacrifice appears in the four slabs closest to the east end of the frieze. The depiction is not violent, but rather gentle and spiritual, in keeping with much of the procession on the frieze.

Sources tell us that ancient Athenian law required a ewe for Pandrosus, daughter of Kekrops, the first king of Athens, whenever Athena received a cow. This offering is incorporated into the overall subject of sacrifice within the North (and the South) frieze, as part of preparations for sacrifice preceding musicians, chariot races and riders. It is here, at this solemn moment, that we observe the spiritual message of the procession and the importance that is placed on all sections of the frieze, as they are all part of one symbolic event.