This fragmentary stele contains a decree approved by the Athenian Council and the People making provisions for the celebration of religious festivals, most likely the Hephaistia, honouring of the god Hephaistos. Lines 17–23 illustrate the procedure to choose by lot the cult supervisors (hieropoioi), while lines 23–24 regulate the distribution of part of the sacrificial meat to metics: the hieropoioi’s duties included providing metics with three oxen and distributing the meat of these animals to them raw (δο̑ναι δὲ [κ]αὶ τοῖς μετοίκοις τρε̑[ς] βοῦς, τούτον Τ[…..9…. hοι h]ιεροποιοὶ [νε]μόντον [α]ὐτοῖς ὀμὰ τὰ κρέα).
This is the first mention of metics in a decree of the Boule and the Demos of the Athenians. The decree reflects the growing involvement of metics in the Athenian community from the mid-5th century BCE, as many metics participated in the vast Periclean building programme. The earliest epigraphic reference to metic status is found in IG I3 244 (475-450 BCE), a document that contains sacrificial regulations (thesmia) of the deme Skambonidai and that mentions metics as recipients of sacrificial apportionments. It should be noted that the Hephaistia is the only Athenian festival at the polis level in which the participation of metics in sacrifices is attested. Although the extent of the honour they received with the allocation of three oxen cannot be determined, as it is not known how many animals were provided to the Athenians at these sacrifices, the fact that the meat of the three oxen was to be distributed to metics raw appears to be significant. Since metics were prompted to take away the raw meat and consume it elsewhere, it would seem that the aim of this provision was to exclude them from the festive occasion of a communal banquet.
[θ]ε[οί]·
[Προκλε̑ς] Ἀτάρβο Ε[ὐονυμεὺς]
[ἐγραμμάτ]ευε, ἐπὶ Ἀριστ[ίονος ἄρχοντος]·
[ἔδοχσεν τε̑ι βολε̑ι καὶ το̑ι δ]έμοι· hιπποθοντὶ[ς ἐπρυτάνευε, Προκλε̑ς ἐγραμμά]-
5 [τευε, ....8.... ἐπεστάτε· Ἀρισ]τίον ἐ̑ρχε, hυπέ[ρβολος (?) εἶπε ........15.......]
[...............29..............]Ι πεντετ[ερίδι (?) ...........21..........]
[..............28..............] νῦμ μὲν ΤΕ[.............25............]
[.........17........]Ο[......12......]ΟΝΟΣΤ[.............26.............]
[.........17........]Ν ΔΕ [......12......]ΕΡΕ[.............26.............]
10 [.........17........] μὲν Ι[....................39...................]
[........16........ ἐ]ν τε̑ι ἀγορᾶι [.................34.................]
[........16........ τ]οῖς δεμότεσι Π[................31...............]
[.........17........]κοντα καὶ hεκατὸν [...............29..............]
[........16........ τ]ε̑ς μοσικε̑ς καθάπερ [..............28..............]
15 [......11.....] το̑ hε[φα]ίστο καὶ τε̑ς Ἀθήναιας [.............26.............]
[.....9....] Ἀθεναίο[ι]ς hόθεν χρὲ ἐχσαιρε̑⟨ν⟩ ἀργύ[ριον ..........19.........]
[....7... hι]εροποιὸ[ς δ]ὲ hοίτινες hιεροποιέσοσ[ι ..........19......... δι]-
[α]κλε[ρο̑σαι] ἐκ το̑ν Δ[..4..]ΤΟΝ hένα ἐκ τε̑ς φυλε̑ς ἐκ ΤΟΛ[..........19.........]
[.]ΧΟΙ δ[ιακλ]εροσάντ[ον μ]ετὰ το̑ν τε̑ς βολε̑ς· διακλεροσ[..........19.........]-
20 ΟΝ τε̑ς βολ[ε̑]ς· hοι δὲ λ[αχ]όντες μισθοφορόντον καθάπερ [.........17........ ἐ]-
πιμέλοντα[ι] τούτον· h[ο]ι δὲ κολακρέται ἀποδιδόντον αὐτ[.......13...... δια]-
κλεροσάτο δὲ καὶ hε β[ο]λὲ σφο̑ν αὐτο̑ν hιεροπ[ο]ιὸς δέκα ἄνδρ[ας hένα ἐκ τε̑ς φυλ]-
ε̑ς hεκάστε[ς]· δο̑ναι δὲ [κ]αὶ τοῖς μετοίκοις τρε̑[ς] βοῦς, τούτον Τ[.....9.... hοι h]-
ιεροποιοὶ [νε]μόντον [α]ὐτοῖς ὀμὰ τὰ κρέα· τε̑ς δὲ πονπε̑ς hόπος [ἂν hος κάλλιστα]
25 πενφθε̑ι hο[ι hι]εροπ[οι]οὶ ἐπιμελόσθον, καὶ ἂν τίς τι ἀκοσμε̑[ι, κύριοι ὄντον αὐ]-
τοὶ μὲν ζεμ[ιο̑ν μέχρι πε]ντέκοντα δραχμο̑ν καὶ ἐκγράφεν ἐς [......12...... ἐὰ]-
[ν] δέ τις ἄχσ[ιος ἐ̑ι μέζον]ος ζε[μ]ίας, τὰς ἐπιβολὰς ποιό[ντ]ον [hοπόσας ἂν δοκε̑ι κ]-
[α]ὶ ἐσαγόν[τον ἐς τὸ δικασ]τέρι[ο]ν τὸ το̑ ἄρχοντος· τὸς δ[ὲ β]οῦ[ς ......11..... σάλ]-
πινγος [προσαγαγε̑ν πρὸς τ]ὸν βομόν· hοίτιν[ε]ς δὲ ἀρο̑νται Ε[......12...... hοι]
30 hιεροποιο[ὶ .....9....] διακοσίος ἐχς Ἀθε[ν]αίον· τὲν δὲ Λ[......11..... τε̑ι πε]-
[ν]τετερίδι [....7... hεφ]αιστίοις· ποιόντο[ν δ]ὲ [h]οι hιεροπ[οιοὶ ......11.....]
[τὲ]ν λανπάδ[α τιθέναι καὶ] τὸν ἄλλον ἀγο̑να γίγνεσθαι καθά[περ ......12......]
[..4..]Ν θέας (?) [......12......]ΟΙ ποιο̑σι· καὶ τὸ λοιπόν, ἐὰν δοκε̑[ι .......13......]
[... Π]οσει[δο̑νι .....9....]ΝΤΟΝ hοι hιεροποιοὶ καὶ το̑ι Ἀπόλ[λονι .....9....]
35 [...5..]Ν· h[οι ......11.....]ΧΟΙ hοι hειρεμένοι ἐς τὰ Προμέθια [.......13......]
[...6...]Τ[.......13......]ΟΣ hελόσθον· τὸν δὲ βομὸν το̑ι hεφαί[στοι .....9....]
[..........20..........]ΤΟ ποιεσάτο hε βολὲ καθότι ἂν αὐτε̑[ι δοκε̑ι ....7...]
[..........19.........]ΘΑΙ καθ’ ἑμέραν ἐν τε̑ι τελευταίαι ΠΕ[.......13......]
[..........19.........]ΑΝ καὶ ἀναγορεύεν καθότι ἂν κριθε̑ι Ι[......12......]
40 [........16........ hιερ]οπ[ο]ιοὶ καὶ hοι ἀγονισταί· τὸς δὲ κρ[ιτὰς .....9....]
[.............26.............] δὲ το̑ν ἄθλον τε̑ς ἀναγραφε̑ς h[οὶ .....10.....]
[.......14....... εἶπε· τὰ μὲν ἄλλα καθά]περ τε̑ι βολε̑ι· ἀναγράφ[σαι δὲ τὸ φσέφι]-
[σμα τόδε ἐστέλει λιθίνει καὶ καταθε̑ναι ἐ]ν το̑ι hιερο̑ι· hο δὲ [γραμματεὺς ...]
[.....................41....................] ἀργυρ[........15.......]
45 [..?..]
Gods. Prokles son of Atarbos of Euonymon was secretary, in the archonship of Aristion. The Council and the People decided, Hippothontis was the prytany, Prokles was secretary, […] was chairman, Aristion was archon, Hyperbolos (?) proposed: […] during the quadrennial festival (?) […] in the agora […] to the demesmen […] one hundred and […] of the music just as […] of Hephaistos and Athena […] for the Athenians, from where the money ought to be taken […] religious officials who hold office […] shall be chosen by lot […] one from each tribe, from […] shall choose them by lot with those from the Council; and they shall choose by lot […] of the Council; and those chosen by lot shall receive a salary just as […] they manage these things; and the payment officers shall pay them the money; and the Council shall choose by lot among themselves ten men as religious officials, one from each tribe; and they shall give three oxen to the metics, of which the religious officials shall distribute the meat to them raw; and the religious officials shall take care of the procession, so that it is conducted in the most beautiful way possible, and if anyone commits an infraction, they shall have the authority to impose fines of up to fifty drachmas and communicate it in writing to the […]; and if anyone deserves a higher punishment, they shall set the fine as high as they think right and introduce the case to the law court of the archon; and the oxen […] shall be led to the altar to the sound of the trumpet; those who shall lift […] and the religious officials […] two hundred Athenians; the […] at the quadrennial festival […] the Hephaistia; and the religious officials shall ensure that […] the torch-race […] the other competition just as the […] the spectacle (?); and in other respects, if it seems appropriate […] to Poseidon […] the religious officials, and to Apollo […] the […] that were chosen for the Prometheia […] they shall choose; and the altar for Hephaistos […] the Council shall […] as they deem […] and daily on the last […] and announce the results […] and the religious officials and the competitors […]; and those selected (?) […] the writing up of the prizes […] proposed: in other respects as proposed by the Council; to write up this decree on a stone stele and set it up in the sanctuary; and the secretary […] money […]
- J.-M. Carbon, S. Peels, V. Pirenne-Delforge, A Collection of Greek Ritual Norms (CGRN), Liège 2016-, no. 43
- K. Hallof (ed.), Inschriftliche Gesetzestexte der frühen Griechischen Polis aus dem Nachlass von Reinhard Koerner, Cologne, Weimar, Vienna 1993, no. 10
- A. Makres, “IG I3 82 Revisited”, in A.P. Matthaiou, R. Pitt (eds.), Athenaion episkopos. Studies in honour of H. B. Mattingly, Athens 2014, 185–202
- F. Sokolowski, Lois sacrées des cités grecques, Paris 1969, no. 13
- S.M. Wijma, Embracing the Immigrant: The Participation of Metics in Athenian Polis Religion (5th-4th c. B.C.), Stuttgart 2014, 86–94