Peplos Ceremony

The peplos ceremony is located in the middle of the Parthenon's East Frieze. It is the only aspect of the architectural sculpture on the Parthenon which does not refer to mythology, but rather to a ceremony that took place every four years in Athens. The activity taking place during this ceremony has been interpreted in various ways. For example, a controversial interpretation refers to an Athenian myth in which we learn how the city of Athens had once been saved from invasion by the sacrifice of the daughters of Erechtheus. If true, this scene is one of sacrifice and the sacrificial victim is one of the young female figures in the central scene.

A less controversial and more widely accepted interpretation proposes that the smaller two female figures at left, who carry stools with cushions on their heads, are.arrephoroi who spent a year weaving a peplos or woolen dress while living on the Acropolis. This peplos was created as a gift offered to the goddess Athena during the greatest of all Athenian festivals, the Panathenaia, which celebrated her birth. This scene shows the moment after the goddess has accepted the gift of the peplos. Instead of portraying the climactic moment of the presentation, the happy result is being depicted, as this ritual is essential to the well-being of the Athenian people. This interpretation has been supported by evidence from the sculptural program of the Parthenon, as well as all aspects of Athenian culture and society during this time.

K.B.