The Rise of the Greek Aristocratic Banquet

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OUP Oxford, 2014 - Art - 400 pages
In The Rise of the Greek Aristocratic Banquet, Wecowski offers a comprehensive account of the origins of the symposion and its close relationship with the rise of the Greek city-state or polis. Broadly defined as a culture-oriented aristocratic banquet, the symposion—which literally means 'drinking together'—was a nocturnal wine party held by Greek aristocrats from Homer to Alexander the Great. Its distinctive feature was the crucial importance of diverse cultural competitions, including improvising convivial poetry, among the guests. Cultural skills and abilities were a prerequisite in order for one to be included in elite drinking circles, and, as such, the symposion served as a forum for the natural selection of Greek aristocracy.
 

Contents

Introduction
1
Defining the Symposion
17
The Symposion and History
125
Bibliography
337

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About the author (2014)

Marek Wecowski is an Assistant Professor of Ancient History at the University of Warsaw. His research interests include archaic Greek poetry, early Greek historiography, and archaic and classical Greek history.

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