(Department of Theatre Studies, University of the Peloponnese, Greece)

Abstract: The rituals of mourning and burial held a prominent place in the tradition and life of the inhabitants of ancient Athens during the classical period. The living had specific obligations towards their dead and leaving a dead body unburied was considered hubris and could provoke the wrath of both the gods and the dead. The fear of the wrath that this event could provoke, leaving a dead body unmourned and unburied, is a theme that we often encounter in Attic tragedy. In this study we will identify the points concerning the process of these rituals in the tragedy The Trojans by Euripides, with emphasis on the part of the lamentation which constitutes the core of the drama’s theme. Mourning and offerings to the dead, the transport of the body and finally the burial of the body were closely intertwined and the entire ritual took the form of a celebration as it included movement and songs, with the women who made up the close family circle having the first role in carrying out the mourning process.