ECCLE'SIA, in ancient history, the great assembly of the Athenian people, at which every free citizen might attend and vote. This assembly, though nomi nally possessed of the supreme authority of the state from the earliest times, yet having no fixed times of meeting, was but seldom convened at all ; so that the archons, who were elected from the body of nobles or had virtually the whole management of the state. But the regulations of Solon, which appointed it to meet regularly four times in every period of thirty-five days, besides extraor dinary occasions on which it might be convened, called it into active energy. Solon, however, restricted the subjects discussed in the Ecelesia to such as had before passed through the senate of five hundred; but when the democratic spirit of after• times prevailed, this rule was not at all strictly observed. The magistrates who had the management of these as semblies were the Prytanes, the I'rohe dri. and Epistates. The first of these sometimes convened the people, and hung up in a conspicuous place a programme giving an account of the matters to he discussed. The Prohedri proposed to the people the subjects on which they were to decide, and counted the votes.
The Epistoie, who presided over the whole, gave the liberty of voting, which might not be done before his signal was given. The forms of their proceedings were at follow : —First, an expiatory victim was sacrificed, and his blood car ried and sprinkled round the bounds of the assembly. 'Then the public crier de manded silence, and invited all persons above fifty years of age to speak ; after that., any one who pleased. After the subject was discussed, they proceeded to vote on the crier's demanding of them, ‘‘ whether they would consent to the de cree proposed to them ?" The votes were commonly given by show of hands, but on some occasions by ballot. When the suffrages had been examined and their numbers declared, the .lrytanes dissolved the assembly. In order to incite the people to attend the Ecelesia, a small pay of one or three oholi was given for early appearance ; and a rope, rubbed with vermilion, was carried through the agora, to mark such as lagged behind, who were accordingly fined.