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Oschophoria

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

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Oscar I, King of Sweden and Norway

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(ὀσχοφόρια , branch-bearing), a festival among the ancient Greeks, celebrated, as some writers allege, in honor of Athene and Dionysus, while others maintain it to have been kept in honor of Dionysus and Ariadne. It was instituted by Theseus, or, according to some, by the Phoenicians. On the occasion of this festival, which was evidently connected with the vintage, two boys, carring vine branches in their hands, went in ranks, playing, from the temple of Dionysus to the sanctuary of Pallas. See Gardner. Faiths of the World, vol. ii, s.v.