Long description

The Ninnion Tablet is a terracotta plaque which was dedicated at the sanctuary of Demeter and Persephone at Eleusis around 370 BCE. It gets its name from the woman who set it up, which we know from an inscription scratched onto the bottom of the plaque. The scenes are thought to represent affairs at the Eleusinian Mysteries, a secret religious festival held in honour of the two goddesses. At the bottom on the right a seated Demeter is depicted. Before her stands the god Iakchos who is leading a group of initiates towards her. They hold torches in their hands.