- Archon basileus
Archon Basileus (Ἄρχων Βασιλεύς) was a Greek title, meaning 'king magistrate': the term is derived the words "
archon " "magistrate " and "basileus " "king" or "sovereign".In classical
Athens , the Archon Basileus was the last remnant of monarchy. Although much of his powers had been filtered away to other institutions such as theAreopagus and later theBoule andEcclesia , he still nominally held a high position in Athenian society, alongside the Eponymous Archon and Polemarch. The Archon Basileus was charged with overseeing the organisation of religious rites.Originally the Archon Basileus was elected from the Athenian aristocracy every ten years. After
683 BC , the office was only held for a year, and afterSolon 's reforms, he was elected from the wealthiest Athenians (the "Pentakosiomedimnoi" (Πεντακοσιομέδιμνοι), "500-bushel men", rather than theEupatridae , the aristocractic families). After487 BC the Archonships were assigned by lot.It is believed the Basileus Archon's wife, the
Basilinna , had to marry to and have sex with the godDionysos during a festival at the Boukoleion in Athens, to ensure the city's safety (Stanton, p.7). It is uncertain how this was enacted. However, this was an important role for a woman who, according to Plutarch and Solon, were otherwise confined to the house and of little importance. It should be noted that, during antiquity, women in Greece served as priestesses at deityoracle s such as at Delphi .References
Stanton, G.R. Athenian Politics c.800-500 B.C.: A Sourcebook. London and New York: Routledge. 1990
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