After an hour of refreshing sleep it was time for the regular exercise out of doors in the Campus Martius or indoors at one of the large city baths. Then came one of the chief pleasures of a Roman's existence--the daily bath. It was taken ordinarily in one of the public bathing establishments, or _thermae_, to be found in every Roman town. [14] A Roman bath was a luxurious affair. After undressing, the bathers entered a warm anteroom and sat for a time on benches, in order to perspire freely. This was a precaution against the danger of passing too suddenly into the hot bath, which was taken in a large tank of water sunk in the middle of the floor. Then came an exhilarating cold plunge and anointing with perfumed oil. Afterwards the bathers rested on the couches with which the resort was supplied and passed the time in reading or conversation until the hour for dinner. THE LATE DINNER The late dinner, with the Romans as with the Greeks, formed the principal meal of the day. It was usually a social function. The host and his guests reclined on couches arranged about a table. The Romans borrowed from the Greeks the custom of ending a banquet with a symposium, or drinking-bout. The tables were cleared of dishes, and the guests were anointed with perfumes and crowned with garlands. During the banquet and the symposium it was customary for professional performers to entertain the guests with music, dancing, pantomimes, and feats of jugglery. 92. AMUSEMENTS ATHENIAN RELIGIOUS FESTIVALS The Athenians celebrated many religious festivals. One of the most important was the Great Panathenaea, [15] held every fourth year in the month of July. Athletic contests and poetical recitations, sacrifices, feasts, and processions honored the goddess Athena, who presided over the Athenian city. Even more interesting, perhaps, were the dramatic performances held in midwinter and in spring, at the festivals of Dionysus. The tragedies and comedies composed for these entertainments took their place among the masterpieces of Greek literature. [Illustration: THEATER OF DIONYSUS, ATHENS The theater of Dionysus where dramatic exhibitions were held lay close to the south eastern angle of the Acropolis. The audience at first sat upon wooden benches rising tier after tier on the adjacent hillside. About the middle of the fourth century B.C. these were replaced by the stone seats which are still to be seen. Sixteen thousand people could be accommodated in this open air theater.] FEATURES OF A GREEK PLAY