Kanephoros

"Canephora" redirects here. For the bagworm moth genus including e.g. C. hirsuta, see Canephora (moth).

The Kanephoros (Ancient Greek: Κανηφόρος, English translation: "Basket Bearer", also known as Canephorae) was an honorific office given to unmarried young women in ancient Greece, which involved the privilege of leading the procession to sacrifice at festivals; the highest honour was to lead the pompe (πομπή) at the Panathenaic Festival. The role was given to a virgin selected from amongst the aristocratic or Eupatrid families of Athens whose purity and youth was thought essential to ensure a successful sacrifice. Her task was to carry a basket or kanoun (κανοῦν), which contained the offering of barley or first fruits, the sacrificial knife and fillets to decorate the bull, in procession through the city up to the altar on the acropolis.