121. An Empire large covered vase in gilt-bronze A vase with a wide frieze depicting a dionysia, scroll-shaped handles, a lid with openwork decoration and a seed-shaped handle, and a quadrangular base. (slight wear), 16cm wide, 16cm deep, 44cm high (6in wide, 6in deep, 17in high). Religious celebrations dedicated to Dionysus, the god of wine, ecstasy and joy, the Dionysia, known as Bacchanalia in the Roman world, combined dancing, music, abundance and sensual freedom. Led by the god's female worshippers, called Maenads by the Greeks and Bacchantes by the Romans, these celebrations took place both in nature and within the city and fulfilled an important civic function. They also provided artists with a subject rich in movement and imagination.