Extract

Pharmakos, a human scapegoat. During the *Thargelia, but also during adverse periods such as *plague and *famine, Athenians and Ionians expelled scapegoa (s), who were called ‘offscourings’, in order ‘to purify’ the cities. These pharmakoi were chosen from the poor and the ugly, received a very special treatment in the *prytaneion (‘townhall’: *Massalia), were led in a procession to the sound of unharmonious music around the city, beaten with wild or infertile plants like the squill, and finally pelted with stones and chased over the border. Corresponding myths speak about aristocrats, princesses, or kings sacrificing themselves for the city. Clearly, myth exaggerates, but saviours have to be important: with a less valuable sacrifice the city cannot be saved. The occurrence of comparable rites among *Hittites and Israelites suggests a Near-Eastern origin. See pollution.