Pyanepsia & Oskhophoria

Pyanepsia and Oskhophoria are ancient Athenian festivals, both held on the 7th day of the month Pyanepsion (Libra in the Northern Hemisphere, Aries in the Southern Hemisphere).

It is said that Theseus prayed for Apollo to favor his quest to conquer the Minotaur, and vowed to give a thank-offering in return. After successfully defeating the Minotaur, Theseus gathered with the other children and mixed everyone's rations to make that thank-offering, which Pyanepsia commemorates. The word Pyanepsia comes from roots meaning "beans" and "to boil", and the traditional offering was panspermia, a mixture of beans, wheat, and other grains.

On the same day, a procession was held from a Temple of Dionysus to the Temple of Athena Skiras at Phaleron. As part of this procession, two young men dressed as women carried branches with grape-clusters still attached (called oskhoi,with Oskhophoria coming from roots meaning 'one who holds the grape-cluster branch').