Roberl D.

SkeeIs
Irofessor Sarah Morris
CIassics 152A
March 4, 2O14
The unsoken and unseen oIis: oiio, ioi q yuvoiio
In ouIar imaginalion lhe Greek oIis of anliquily is comrised of grand ubIic
buiIdingsmoslIy lemIes, nascenl arlicialory democracies, and lhe exIoils of
greal men. This rosy, bul inadequale iclure Ieaves oul lhe far more numerous
domeslic slruclures in vhich eoIe Iived. }usl as imorlanl, il Ieaves oul lhe ma|orily
of lhe oIis' ouIalion, much of vhom vere vomen, and lheir aclivilies aIlogelher.
LargeIy ignored oulside academia, lhe common house and lhose vho senl mosl of
lheir lime vilhin ils conhnes are of foremosl imorlance lo underslanding lhe oIis.
ArchaeoIogicaI and lexluaI evidence aboul househoIds rovide a more comIele iclure
of ubIic and rivale Iife in lhe ancienl Greek cily. This aer examines vhal some of
lhe evidence leIIs us aboul Iife for vomen in lheir homes and lhe oIis.
Desile being ignored subslanliveIy in broader surveys of lhe oIis, lhere is a
greal deaI of schoIarshi on bolh lhe Greek house, and vomen in Greek anliquily. As
such, having a framevork in vhich lo discuss bolh lhe house and ils residenls is
heIfuI. Rulh Weslgale emIoys |usl such a slruclure in her aer The Greek House
and lhe IdeoIogy of Cilizenshi vhere she uliIizes a modeI roosed by Richard
Ianlon lo exIore lhe various asecls of oIis in reIalion lo lhe rivale house (23O).
Here ve viII use a differenl framevork based on a lhesis resenled in Iage duois'
R.D. SkeeIs 2
Ccnicurs cn! Amczcns. Wcmcn cn! inc Prc-Hisicrq cj inc Grcci Cncin cj Bcing. Duois
osils a comeIIing argumenl regarding vhal she lerms oIis cuIlure, nameIy lhal il
consisled of lhe Greek maIe human being (3). Moreover, she menlions lhal:
The olheraIien, femaIe, besliaIis excIuded, in lhis discourse, from
cuIlure and sel al lhe boundaries of lhe cily lo dehne il as a circIe of
equaIs.
In Iilerary discourse, lhe melahor of marriage, as a founding and
suslaining acl of cuIlure, vas sel againsl lhal of var, pc|cmcs. LquaIs vere
lo exchange vomen: lhose oulside lhe circIe exisled in an anlagonislic
reIalionshi lo lhe body of cilizens.
In lhis modeI of lhe cily, hovever, lhe osilion of vomen vas
graduaIIy reveaIed as conlradiclory, since vomen vere lhe ob|ecls of lhe
cuIlure-founding acl of exchange. They vere excIuded from lhe cily yel
necessary for ils reroduclion. (4)
This assage has severaI saIienl oinls lhal aIIov an inleresling erseclive for
lhe exIoralion of lhe rivale house in reIalion lo lhe oIis. Iirsl, il reminds us lhal aII
lhe rheloric of egaIilarianism and democracy as racliced in lhe ancienl cily vas
conhned lo maIe cilizens. Weslgale frames lhe ideoIogy behind lhe rise of lhe oIis
simiIarIy: .vhich romoled equaIily belveen men arlIy by excIuding vomen,
re|ecling lhe arislocralic emhasis on birlh as lhe rimary delerminanl of slalus (229).
Lisa Nevell vriles This cilizen body comrised lhe minorily of lhe aduIl maIe
ouIalion vho fuIhIIed cerlain requiremenls of arenlage and roerly ovnershi
(invoIving ossession of an ci|cs, in ils broad sense) (6). Second, duois' oinl aboul
vomen being necessary for lhe reroduclion of lhe oIis is cruciaI. Lxanding on
R.D. SkeeIs 3
duois' lhesis, lhere are lhree asecls lo lhis concel of reroduclion
1
lhal vomen vere
invoIved vilh. The hrsl being lhe mosl obvious, molhering chiIdren for lhe househoId,
and uIlimaleIy lhe slale. The second being unaid Iabor lhal is sociaIIy necessary lo
raise and mainlain a famiIy, bul unrecognized in lerms of ils economic imorlance. The
Iasl being essenliaIIy lhe same lasks as lhe second, bul once lhe Iabor erformed
rovided more lhan vhal vas necessary for suslenance, lhe surIus vas used lo rohl
lhe househoId. We viII examine lhe former asecl using archaeoIogicaI evidence and
olher schoIarshi by Nevell and olhers. The Ialler lvo asecls viII be lrealed logelher
using evidence from a variely of schoIars.
!"#$"%& ( )*+,-./+01-2
The nolion of a circumsecl IeneIoe descending lhe high slaircase lhal vas buiIl in
her aIace, nol aII aIone, since lvo handmaidens venl lo allend her oflen cIouds
2
lhe
underslanding of lhe lyicaI Greek house in lhe CIassicaI eriod (Homer 35, I.325).
WhiIe lhere is amIe evidence
3
lhal some Greek houses had uer oors, al Ieasl in
arl, lhe nolion lhal every house had a seciaI uslairs chamber |usl for vomen is nol
borne oul by archaeoIogy (Nevell 71). Anolher ersislenl concel is lhal of lhe
gunaikon (gunaikonilis) or vomen's quarlers. The lerm is allribuled lo Vilruvius:
Hereabouls, lovards lhe inner side, are lhe Iarge rooms in vhich
mislresses of houses sil vilh lheir vooI-sinners. To lhe righl and Iefl of
1 These lhree asecls of reroduclion in service lo cIass sociely described in lhis aer are IooseIy
derived in arl from varied sources of cIassicaI Marxism. AIlhough nol used here because of muIliIe
anachronisms, LngeIs' 1nc Origin cj inc |cmi|q, Pritcic Prcpcriq cn! inc Sicic does focus a greal deaI on
Greek anliquily. This quole from lhe vork is somevhal aroos: The hrsl division of Iabor is lhal
belveen man and voman for lhe roagalion of chiIdren (II.4). LngeIs conlends lhe rise of cIass
sociely corresonded lo lhe inslilulion of monogamous marriage.
2 Nevell varns of lhe dangers of conaling sources from differenl eriods (7).
3 (WycherIey, Hcu inc Grcc|s 187), Nole 12 in (ibid. 221), Nevell in (AuIl and Nevell 19).
R.D. SkeeIs 4
lhe roslas lhere are chambers, one of vhich is caIIed lhe lhaIamos, lhe
olher lhe amhilhaIamos. AII around lhe coIonnades are dining rooms
for everyday use, chambers, and rooms for lhe sIaves. This arl of lhe
house is lermed gynaeconilis. (186, VI.VII.2)
This idea of a searale and secihc arl of lhe house for vomen is quile revaIenl in
ouIar narralives of Greek anliquily, bul for decades schoIarshi has found il dubious.
WycherIey vriles: such reconslruclions vere based on doublfuI inlerrelalions of lhe
Iilerary evidence, arlicuIarIy on Vilruvius, vhose descrilions of Greek buiIding-lyes
have oflen been lhe reverse of heIfuI if laken lo aIy lo limes much earIier lhan his
ovn (Hcu inc Grcc|s 185). Iigures 1 and 2 shov a diagram based on Vilruvius'
descrilions of lhe Greek house versus lhe archaeoIogicaI Ians of lhe excavaled houses
C and D in lhe Alhenian Agora.
The absence of an ofhciaI gunaikon is nol lo say lhal lhere vere nol orlions of
lhe house lhal served lhal funclion, nor lhal lhere vas nol segregalion of femaIe
members of lhe househoId lo revenl exosure lo non-reIalive maIes. Indeed, such
consideralions vere exlremeIy imorlanl because of lheir imacl on lhe reroduclion of
cilizens (alernily), and lheir bearing on roerly queslions.
4
Nevell's observalions
make lhis case:
In Alhens, al Ieasl, lhe rank of a voman's ovn falher vas cruciaI in lhe
rocess of inherilance. Irom lhe mid-hflh cenlury, IerikIes' cilizenshi
Iav decreed lhal nol onIy a boy's falher bul aIso his molher had lo be from
a cilizen famiIy in order lo ensure lhal he, loo, vouId be enlilIed lo cilizen
4 A erusaI of lhe seclion enlilIed IV. LegaI Slalus in lhe Greek WorId in Lefkovilz and Ianl shovs
lhe vasl ma|orily of exlanl maleriaIs discussing vomen's IegaI slalus have lo do vilh roerly
(incIuding dovries) and alernily.
R.D. SkeeIs 5
slalus and couId IegilimaleIy inheril.
5
(15)
The Greek, more secihcaIIy Alhenian, voman meeling lhe requiremenls Nevell
describes above hoIds an ambiguous slalus in lhe oIis, and hence duois' asserlion
lhal her osilion vas conlradiclory (4). n lhe one hand she is oulside lhe circIe of
Greek maIe human being|sj (duois 3), Ieaving her unsoken and unseen in lhe
ubIic Iife of lhe oIisexeriencing aImosl lolaI excIusion (Nevell 15). n lhe olher
hand, her slalus is nol lhe same as lhe aIienbe lhey sIaves, melics, or foreign-born
vives, nor does she occuy lhe slalus of besliaI. Iurlher evidence of lhis division is
found in Weslgale: Lach man's nevIy emovered slalus as head of an indeendenl
househoId vas boIslered by a sharening of lhe dislinclions belveen men and vomen
and free and sIave... (234).
Nevell's carefuI examinalion of archaeoIogicaI evidence Ieads her lo suggesl lhal
cerlain archilecluraI fealures of lhe oikos served lhe same roIe of segregaling househoId
femaIes as lhe gunaikon: The Iynlhos maleriaI suggesls lhe isoIalion of visilors from
from some househoId members, bul nol lhe vhoIesaIe searalion of famiIy members of
differenl sexes. Ralher lhan secIuding vomen vilhin arlicuIar rooms of lhe house, lhis
isoIalion vas achieved by roviding faciIilies secihcaIIy for maIe guesls. (155). lher
schoIars cile high vaIIs and singIe (or fev ) enlrances as aiding in lhal roIe (Weslgale
236). AddilionaIIy, Nevell discusses modern examIes of cuIlures lhal segregale vomen
in order lo conlroI reroduclive caacily (3O-31, 72). Taken logelher, il is cIear lhal lhe
funclions of lhe gunaikon vere observed in cilizen househoIds, bul in a more uid
manner lhan reviousIy lhoughl. A more exlensive survey lhan lhis vouId examine lhe
inlerseclions of lhe Greek femaIe vilh her cIass slalus, eseciaIIy since much of vhal
5 Nevell's ovn in-lexl cilalions here are imorlanl: (ArislolIe Conslilulion of lhe Alhenians 26.4, ibid.,
42.1-2)
R.D. SkeeIs 6
has been discussed here is in lhe conlexl of lhe ideaI.
345 $"%678% 9:;965 <=>%?
||||csiczusccs heroine Iraxagora' seech, vhiIe inlersersed vilh humor, describes
severaI lasks common for lhe Greek voman: dyeing vooI, cooking, carrying lhings on
lheir heads, engaging in cuIl ceIebralions, and baking cakes (Arislohanes 229, Iines
215~225). The above heading, laken from lhe same assage, seemingIy indicales lhese
lasks vere hisloricaIIy in lhe domain of vomen. As loday, lhe vork erformed in lhe
individuaI home, vhiIe sociaIIy necessary for bolh lhe famiIy and lhe slale (oIis), is
lyicaIIy ignored vhen discussing economic conlribulions. Hovever, vilhoul lhis form
of sociaI reroduclion in lerms of Iabor, lhere vouId be no oikos, and, in lurn, no oIis.
Thal said, lhe vork erformed by vomen of cilizen arenlage in lhe home vas nol so
an exIoilalive slalus as lhal of sIaves. Indeed, she vouId have an incenlive: The
dovry vouId have meanl lhal, Iiker her husband, a vife had an economic slake in her
nev ci|cs (IoxhaII 1989, 35), aIIoving her some hnanciaI securily (Nevell 15).
efore roceeding lo Iook al some of lhe lye of vork lyicaI in lhe Greek house,
il may do veII lo examine lhe origins of lhe division of Iabor by gender. LIizabelh
arber arahrases a vork by }udilh rovn vhich eslabIishes vhelher or nol lhe
communily rc|ics uon vomen as lhe chief roviders of a given lye of Iabor deend
uon 'lhe comalibiIily of lhis ursuil vilh lhe demands of chiId care' (29). Afler
Iisling characlerislics rovn considered essenliaI, arber goes on lo say }usl such are
lhe crafls of sinning, veaving, and seving: reelilive, easy lo ick u al any oinl,
reasonabIy chiId-safe, and easiIy done al home (3O). Weaving is a lask erformed by
R.D. SkeeIs 7
Greek vomen for vhich ve have a greal deaI of archaeoIogicaI and lexluaI evidence.
Loom veighls are found everyvhere, incIuding lhe reviousIy menlioned houses C and
D in lhe Agora (WycherIey Sicncs 24O). Vase ainlings Iike lhal in Iigure 3 shov lhe
enlire rocess
6
of lexliIe vork. Chaler 1O of arber's book rovides a comendium of
mylhoIogy in reIalion lo lexliIes, sinning, and veaving. Nevell says ne of lhe fev
lyes of aclivily vhich aear lo be slrongIy associaled vilh a arlicuIar grou, and
vhich can be Iocaled using archaeoIogicaI evidence, are lhe crafls of veaving and
sinning (4O). So cuIluraIIy ervasive is lhe idenlihcalion of Greek vomen vilh
veaving, lhal il is robabIy lhe one lask lhal vouId nol be sub|ecl lo cIass boundaries.
WeaIlhier househoIds aImosl cerlainIy assigned olher lasks Iike felching valer
from founlain houses lo sIaves, aIlhough as Nevell exIains, il is difhcuIl dislinguish
slalus from evidence Iike vase ainlings (16). CIass and division of Iabor raises olher
inleresling queslions. erlha Rider vriles lhal lhe houses of lhe veaIlhy had gardens
(213). Do ve assume lhal if lhey vere lhal veaIlhy, lhen lhe voman of lhe house had
nolhing lo do vilh lhem` Whal ve can be sure of is lhal hnanciaI necessily oflen sav
vomen erforming more difhcuIl lasks inside, and as Nevell exIains, oulside lhe
house (16).
HousehoIds lhal vere roserous enough lo become fuIIy seIf suslaining
frequenlIy soId lheir surIus lo increase lheir veaIlh. NichoIas CahiII says such
househoIds can be dislinguished by lhe unusuaI quanlilies of ordinary househoId
arlifacls lhey ossessed, ralher lhan secihcaIIy 'induslriaI' arlifacls such as moIds or
unhnished scuIlures (55). WycherIey idenlihes a ossibIe slorefronl in lhe rivale
dveIIing (house C - D in lhe Agora): Whal aears lo have been a sho, oening
6 Iigure 9.4 of arber shovs lhe scene from lhis vase unvound as a anorama, so lo seak (22O).
R.D. SkeeIs 8
indeendenlIy inlo lhe slreel, occuies lhe norlhvesl corner of C, ils oor IeveI vas
higher and il had ils ovn veII. (Sicncs 238). To vhal exlenl vomen vere engaged in
lhis induslriaI vork vas robabIy deendenl on a number of faclors, nol lhe Ieasl of
vhich vas her slalus. CahiII quoles lhe slory reIaled in Xenohon in vhich cIass
dislinclions needed lo be veighed againsl economic consideralions (6O).
Above ve menlioned lhal vomen of cilizen arenlage heId, al Ieasl lheorelicaIIy,
a differenl slalus lhan lhal of aIiens. ConverseIy, aIien vomen may nol have been under
lhe same degree of scruliny. This obviousIy aIies for sIaves as veII. The Iarger scaIe
househoId induslry described by CahiII and arbara Tsakirgis ossibIy emIoyed lhem
bolh, and mosl IikeIy lhe Ialler. Tsakirgis, discussing lhe ossibIe ovners of Agora
houses incIuding C and D, slales: Melics vere knov lo be reguIarIy emIoyed in lhe
banauslic lrades carried on in lhese lhree houses and so couId have been lhe residenls
here. Ior examIe, CehaIus, lhe ovner of lhe shieId faclory menlioned above, vas a
melic (77). The exlenl lo vhich such non-cilizen residency inuenced lhe slalus of
vomen in such househoIds is unknovn. Whal is knovn, is lhal vomen of aII sociaI
cIasses and slaluses Iayed a ma|or roIe in lhe househoId economy, vhelher lheir Iabor
suslained lhe oikos, or addilionaIIy, lhal surIus vaIue broughl income from lhe markel.
When discussing lhe oIis Sarah Morris said sIaves and vomen vere bolh
ubiquilous and invisibIe (Leclure). Thal is a very rofound vay of describing vomen
in Greek anliquily, lheir reIalionshi vilh lhe oIis, and il echoes duois' lhesis. Desile
lhe ancienl Greek voman's invisibiIily, she is lhe cornerslone of cuIlure. Wilhoul her
roviding various sociaIIy necessary asecls of reroduclion, lhe oikos, and
subsequenlIy, lhe oIis, are vilhoul foundalion.
R.D. SkeeIs 9
Iigures
Iigure 1. (Vilruvius 186)
Iigure 2. (Tsakirgis 73)

Iigure 3. (Lefkovilz and Ianl IIale 9)
R.D. SkeeIs
Works Ciled
Arislohanes, David arrell, and AIan H. Sommerslein. 1nc Bir!s cn! Oincr P|cqs. 1nc
Knignis, Pcccc, Wcc|in, inc Asscm||qucmcn. London: Ienguin, 2OO3. Irinl.
AuIl, radIey A, and Lisa C. Nevell. Ancicni Grcc| Hcuscs cn! Hcuscnc|!s. Cnrcnc|cgicc|,
Rcgicnc|, cn! Sccic| Ditcrsiiq. IhiIadeIhia: Iniversily of IennsyIvania Iress,
2OO5. Irinl.
arber, L }. W. Wcmcns Wcr|. 1nc |irsi 20,000 Yccrs . Wcmcn, C|cin, cn! Scciciq in |cr|q
1imcs. Nev York: Norlon, 1994. Irinl.
CahiII, NichoIas. HousehoId Induslry in Greece and AnaloIia. Ancicni Grcc| Hcuscs
cn! Hcuscnc|!s. Cnrcnc|cgicc|, Rcgicnc|, cn! Sccic| Ditcrsiiq. Ld. . AuIl, L. Nevell.
IhiIadeIhia: Iniversily of IennsyIvania Iress, 2OO5. 54-66. Irinl.
Duois, Iage. Ccnicurs cn! Amczcns. Wcmcn cn! inc Prc-Hisicrq cj inc Grcci Cncin cj
Bcing. Ann Arbor: Iniversily of Michigan Ir, 1994. Irinl.
LngeIs, Iriedrich. 1nc Origin cj inc |cmi|q, Pritcic Prcpcriq cn! inc Sicic. Trans. A. Wesl.
Marxisls Inlernel Archive, 2O1O. Web. 2 Mar. 2O14. hll:;;vvv.marxisls.org.
Homer, and Richmond Lallimore. 1nc O!qsscq cj Hcmcr. Nev York: Harer Rov,
1975. Irinl.
Lefkovilz, Mary R, and Maureen . Ianl. Wcmcns Iijc in Grcccc c Rcmc. A Scurcc Bcc|
in 1rcns|ciicn. aIlimore: }ohns Hokins Iniversily Iress, 1992. Irinl.
Morris, Sarah. The Imaginary IoIis: Women in Charge. Iniversily of CaIifornia, Los
AngeIes. Dodd HaII, Los AngeIes, CA. 2O Iebruary 2O14. Leclure.
Nevell, Lisa C. Hcusc cn! Scciciq in inc Ancicni Grcc| Wcr|!. Cambridge: Cambridge
Iniversily Iress, 1999. Irinl.
R.D. SkeeIs
Rider, erlha C. Ancicni Grcc| Hcuscs. 1ncir Hisicrq cn! Dctc|cpmcni jrcm inc Ncc|iinic
Pcric! ic inc Hc||cnisiic Agc. Chicago: Argonaul, 1964. Irinl.
Tsakirgis, arbara. Living and Working around lhe Alhenian Agora: A IreIiminary
Case Sludy of Three Houses. Ancicni Grcc| Hcuscs cn! Hcuscnc|!s. Cnrcnc|cgicc|,
Rcgicnc|, cn! Sccic| Ditcrsiiq. Ld. . AuIl, L. Nevell. IhiIadeIhia: Iniversily of
IennsyIvania Iress, 2OO5. 67-82. Irinl.
Vilruvius, IoIIio, and M H. Morgan. Viirutius. 1nc 1cn Bcc|s cn Arcniicciurc. Nev York:
Dover IubIicalions, 196O. Irinl.
Weslgale, Rulh. The Greek House and lhe IdeoIogy of Cilizenshi. Wcr|! Arcnccc|cgq.
39.2 (2OO7): 229-245. Irinl.
WycherIey, Richard L. Hcu inc Grcc|s Bui|i Ciiics. 1nc Rc|ciicnsnip cj Arcniicciurc cn!
1cun P|cnning ic |tcrq!cq Iijc in Ancicni Grcccc. Nev York: Norlon, 1976. Irinl.
. 1nc Sicncs cj Aincns. Irincelon, N.}: Irincelon Iniversily Iress, 1978. Irinl.