Thesmophoria: Encyclopedia - Thesmophoria
Thesmophoria
Thesmophoria was a festival held in Greek cities in honour of the twin goddesses Demeter and her daughter Persephone. It celebrated the half of the year when Demeter didn't work in her role of goddess of the harvest and growth; she spent this half of the year (the harsh summer months of Greece, when vegetation dies and lacks rain) with her daughter who had been released by Hades; to whom Persephone was wedded.
As a goddess of marriage, this feast was for women to celebrate the customs of the land. Only women who were the spouses of Athenian citizens could attend the festival; no slaves, men or unmarried women. The ceremony was supposed to promote fertility.
The word stems from an epithet for Demeter: Thesmophoros ("she of the regular customs").
The playwright and poet Aristophanes parodied this festival in the play, Thesmophoriazusae.
Not much else is known about the Thesmophoria, as only women were allowed to attend and it was rare that women wrote down anything at this time, short of letters. The "mysteries" surrounding restrictive religious ceremonies were jealously guarded by those who performed them.
The ceremony involved retrieving the decaying remains of pigs that had been placed in trenches and pits previously. As snakes were known to congregate in such pits, those who didn't go to retrieve the remains shouted to scare away any that might be lurking down there. After prayers the foetid remains were mixed with seeds and planted.
 Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Thesmophoria", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki | 
