It was a contract between a man, a woman and the state and a contract not t~,be broken. In some small villages you couJd be sent to jail if you broke the contract. In other words, it was a criminal thing. Perhaps at least the spirit of this ancient arrangement somehow prevails in modern Greece - hence its record low divorce rate.

Another very important test' contributed to a non-divorce Greek marriage was the counsel a father gave his daughter. It goes like this: you can have your own opinion, you still can be your own person with your own pride-but never disagree with your husband. Let your husband always be right. He can do no wrong-the all important thing is your marriage.

Dear daughter, you will be surprised that though this seems a one sided policy, in time you may find your husband realizing what a treasure he has in you, may be coming to you for advice. You will not only have your way but his too.

In Delphi I once asked a husband his opinion on one of the books I had just written. His reply was: Let me discuss this with my wife and I'll let you know tonight.- what a revelation.

In conclusion, following are some comments by marriage experts on the wedding ceremony and a wife's first duty "On the day of the wedding the Athenian bride took a ritual bath in water. This was poured from a special vase. known as a loutrophoros which means literally "sacred water." This bath prepared her for her new life. It was followed by a feast held at the home of the bride's father.

Here the bride, who vvas veiled, sat apart from all the men, including the bridegroom. Beside her sat an older woman called a mympheutria, who guided her through the ceremony. Instead of a tiered wedding cake with fruit filling covered in icing sugar, little cakes covered with sesame seeds were served to the guests. These were believed to make women fertile. Toward evening the bridegroom led his bride, still veiled, from her father's house in a wagon drawn by mules or OXen. The bride sat in the middle with the groom on one side and the best man on the other. Torchlight preceded the wedding party along the route, and wedding hymns were sung to the accompaniment of the flute and lyre. On arrival at the bridegroom's house, the pair were showered with nuts and dried figs by members of the household. They now entered the bridal chamber and the bride removed her veil. An epithalamion was sung outside. A Greek wedding was a private ceremony, which did not require the service of a state official or priest.

The first and overriding duty of the Greek wife was to provide her husband with offspring, preferably male offspring, to assure that his household did not die out. In the absence of any reliable method of birth control, there would be little opportunity for respite between pregnancies. In addition to that the pressure that came from husband and the husband's family, there would also have been the pressure from society at large, since every Greek community expected that its citizens to beget legitimate children in order to. keep the population at parity.

Because of the high level of infant mortality, it is estimated each married couple would have to produce four or five children in order to achieve even this modest target.

The important thing is the marriage loveless or not.

The husband can do no wrong--and in the long run tht husband turns to his wife and the} have a successful marriage."