A three-day festival held in all the Ionian Greek cities, in the spring. Because Athenians liked to write things down on random items like pottery, we know the most about how Athens celebrated Anthesteria. On the first day, it was known as “Pithoigia” which means “the opening of the jars.” That’s when everyone would get to taste, for the first time, the wine that had fermented over the winter. Kids would often be put on swings, evoking the myth of how Dionysus first gave wine to man. That is all I will say on that subject, because the full story is pretty macabre.
The second day was known as “Choes.” This was the day that everyone went crazy. People dressed up and imitated the mythical followers of Dionysus, like naenads and satyrs. This was one of the only times that Greeks would drink unmixed wine. Normally, there were very strict rules about how you watered down wine. So as you can imagine, the Greeks would get pretty fucked up. It was a festival designed to evoke a more primitive time, and it was believed the souls of the dead came out to walk — and party — with the living. Social hierarchies were turned on their head - men would chase after women and women could (gasp) refuse them!
The third day was “Chytroi” which roughly translates to “feast of the pots.” A pot of gruel or lentils would be sacrified to Dionysus. It was the day the Greeks would go back in time — before animal sacrifice, before gods, and before wine. This was the day everyone was really hungover, and since they did not drink, it was probably pretty bad.
source:Greek Religion by Walter Burkert
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