The
Roman playwright Accius says that to celebrate the
Kronia, "In nearly all fields and towns they happily feast upon banquets, and everyone waits upon his own servants." Slaves and the free, rich and poor, all dined together and played games. The freedom from work and social
egalitarianism enjoyed on the day represented the conditions of the mythical
Golden Age, when
Kronos (Cronus) still ruled the world. In the Golden Age, the earth had spontaneously supported human life, and since labor was unneeded, slavery had not existed. William Hansen describes the Golden Age of Kronos as "a period of thorough harmony in which hierarchical, exploitative, and predatory relationships were nonexistent." The
Kronia was a time for social restraints to be temporarily forgotten. Slaves were released from their duties, and participated in the festivities alongside the slave-owners. Slaves were "
permitted to run riot through the city, shouting and making a noise." Other than the
Kronia, there is only limited evidence of religious devotion to
Kronos (Cronus). ==See also==