Daily Life of the Ancient Greeks

42 Daily Life of the Ancient Greeks
The Painted Stoa. Courtesy of the American School of Classical Studies at
Athens.
found. Here, too, a century later gathered the Stoics, philosophers
who took their name from the Painted Stoa, so named because of
paintings done on wooden panels that were displayed inside it,
which came to light in 1981 in the northwest corner of the Agora.
The Agora was also a place to pass the time of day, as suggested by
the verb agorazein, which means to “loaf about.” Groups of Athenians,
as well as foreigners, had their favorite meeting places. As
the speaker in a law court oration by Lysias states (24.20), “Each of
you is in the habit of frequenting some place, a perfumer’s shop,
a barber’s shop, a cobbler’s and so forth.” The Dekeleians, for
instance, gathered at the barber’s shop beside the Herms (stone pillars
with the head of the god Hermes), whereas the Plataians could
be found at the cheese market on the last day of the month.
One of the most frequented spots was the monument to the Eponymous
Heroes, which stood in the southwest corner of the Agora
close to the law courts. This monument honored the heroes who
gave their names to the 10 Athenian tribes that were created by
Kleisthenes. Its base served as a public notice board that provided
news about military conscription, forthcoming trials, agendas for
public meetings, proposed legislation, and other public matters.
Other important secular buildings located in the Agora include the