Pamboeotia ( Gr. ) was a major festive

panegyris A panegyris ( grc, πανήγυρις "gathering"), is an Ancient Greek general, national or religious assembly. Each was dedicated to the worship of a particular god. It is also associated with saint days and holy festivals. Panegryis is used thr ...

of all the

Boeotia Boeotia ( ), sometimes Latinized as Boiotia or Beotia ( el, Βοιωτία; modern: ; ancient: ), formerly known as Cadmeis, is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Central Greece. Its capital is Livadeia, and its ...

ns, celebrated probably annually. The grammarians compare the Pamboeotia with the

Panathenaea The Panathenaea (or Panathenaia) was a multi-day ancient Greek festival held annually in Athens that would always conclude on 28 Hekatombaion, the first month of the Attic calendar.Shear, Julia L. “Hadrian, the Panathenaia, and the Athenian Cal ...

of the

Attica Attica ( el, Αττική, Ancient Greek ''Attikḗ'' or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the city of Athens, the capital of Greece and its countryside. It is a peninsula projecting into the Aegean ...

ns, and the Panionia of the

Ionia Ionia () was an ancient region on the western coast of Anatolia, to the south of present-day Izmir. It consisted of the northernmost territories of the Ionian League of Greek settlements. Never a unified state, it was named after the Ionia ...

ns. Though probably quite older than this, even primitive, the festival is celebrated with the name "Pamboeotia" only starting in the 3rd century BC. The festival was celebrated in the tenth month of the

n calendar, ''Pamboiotos'', at a temple of

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of v ...

Itonia in the neighborhood of Coronea. The principal object of the meeting was the common worship of

Itonia. Activities included dancing and music and athletic events of a somewhat militaristic character, such as spear-throwing, trumpeting, heralding, mock battles, and horse racing. The priestess of the shrine was appointed by the

Boeotian League Boeotia ( ), sometimes Latinized as Boiotia or Beotia ( el, Βοιωτία; modern: ; ancient: ), formerly known as Cadmeis, is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Central Greece. Its capital is Livadeia, and its ...

. A depiction of a Pamboeotia festival can be seen on a ''lekane'' in the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

, on which men approach an altar of

that is covered in flame. Some of the men are leading an ox to sacrifice to the goddess. Before these men is a woman bearing on her head a platter of offerings. From

Polybius Polybius (; grc-gre, Πολύβιος, ; ) was a Greek historian of the Hellenistic period. He is noted for his work , which covered the period of 264–146 BC and the Punic Wars in detail. Polybius is important for his analysis of the mixed ...

it appears that during this national festival no war was allowed to be carried on, and that in case of a war a truce was always concluded. This panegyris is also mentioned by

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for hi ...

. It is a disputed point whether the Pamboeotia had anything to do with the political constitution of Boeotia, or with the relation of its several towns to Thebes; but if so, it can have been only previous to the time when Thebes had obtained the undisputed supremacy in Boeotia. Some writers think it likely that this was the occasion on which

n representatives to the

Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), in ancient times was a sacred precinct that served as the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world. The orac ...

Amphictyonic League In Archaic Greece, an amphictyony ( grc-gre, ἀμφικτυονία, a "league of neighbors"), or amphictyonic league, was an ancient religious association of tribes formed before the rise of the Greek '' poleis''. The six Dorian cities of coast ...

were elected.

References

{{SmithDGRA, title=Pamboeotia Festivals of Athena Festivals in ancient Boeotia