A Little more, on water and wine.
When the preliminary phase of eating was over,
The baqueters, after washing their hands, received garlands for their heads,
Chest, and cups. The crown, a symbol of initiation, was the physical sign of membership representing the link created by drinking together.
As in theater, once the scene was set, the sacred phase of the meeting could begin.
Imagine it being very silent, or (euphemia), which predisposed those present to make contact with the gods.
Before mixing water and wine in the Krater, each banqueter received a cup of undiluted wine in which to pour a few drops in honor of the good spirit (agathos daimon). This was the religious act that formilized a communal link and sealed an eternal bond.
Wine and water where mixed according to proportions dictated by the type of entertainment that would take place. (Plu. Quaest. Conv. 657d). The almost barbaric mixing of two parts wine to one part water, mentioned by Alcaeus, must have been very rare and certainly was intended for a very special occasion (fr. 364V.) A Krater in which equal parts of water and wine had been poured was considered dangerous and bound to lead to drunkenness in a very short time.
Such a mixture was reserved for symposia in which entertainment was more important then serious matters, as repeatedly mentioned by playwrights. Less alcohol mixtures, of tweo or three parts of water to one part wine, were recommended by Hesiod (Op. 696) and regarded by Plutarch as the mixture of perfect balance.
Before the servents started mixing the wine, the symposiarch was appointed.
Apart from the distinction between young and old men, this was the only sign of hierarchy to be found in symposia, and it is not clear when the practice began. The position of symposiarch did not necessarily reflect official power, indicating the independence of meeting from the rules governing public life. The symposiarch establishes the ratio of wine to water, the number of Kraters to set out, and the forms of entertainment to amuse the group.
He was the only person who could violate the rules of equality, obliging some to drink more then others or to demonstrate their abilities.
Once the wine had been prepared, the servents filled the cups from a jug (oinocoe) or ladle. With the wine from the first Krater, libations were made to Zeus and the Olympic family. The second was dedicated to the spirits of heroes, while the third was drunk in the honor of Zeus Soter.
The sacrificial part of the feast was accompaoned by a double flute and a chorus singing of paean, which could be followed poetry or the recital of brief sections of hymns to those divinities that had some purpose of the meeting.
After the introduction of the entertainment, appeitizers were then served to stimulate the thirst-cheeses and different types of bread (traghemata) can be seen on archaic vases and are mentioned on numerous occasions by playwrights ( Ath. XIV.64oc-65
. In it'’ later more festive part, known as the Komos, the symposium often moved out into the streets.
The Krater was carried outside by the dancing participants in a drunken parade, more or less unruly, accompanied by the flautist. Scenes of this type can be seen on vases from the end of the fifth century B.C.
The immutable nature of the rite was accompanied by the evolution in the function and symbolic values of the symposium.
