stages of the women during this festival:For at seven years or less I became a girl priestess in the Erechthean temple of the Maid; And at ten upon this hill I made flour in the mill. For the cakes which to our Lady are displayed, Then I went to Brauron town and put on a yellow gown. To walk in the procession as the Bear; To complete my perfect score I the sacred basket bore at Athena's feast when I was young and fair. (1.1.663-673)These stages have certain tasks which display the ancient system that all girls must go by when reaching puberty. The stages of this "initiation" are as follows. The Arrhephoroi comes first, and is a time when the girl dresses in white and begins to weave for the offering to Athena. This is an art that was frequently performed by women during the time, and therefore must be taught at a young age. The second stage is to teach the girl how to bake, specifically, how to bake bread. The third step is considered a symbol of death and resurrection. The girl must attend and participate in the festival with the older women. These stages are all tasks that the girl will use for the rest of her life, and therefore are held with high importance and expectation. It is believed through sources that Attica was one of the first in history to have one of these festivals. Mythos connection The ritual itself is based on a mythological story of Athena and her punishment of two young girls. Kekrops, the first king of Athens, whose tomb was in the complex, had three daughters, Aglauros, Herse, and Pandrosos. The mystery revolves around innocence, obedience, and fecundity. They were given a closed basket by Athena who forbade them to open it. One night Aglauros and Herse gave in to curiosity, opened the basket, and saw Ericthonios, the mysterious child of Hephaestus. Athena punishing the girls for breaking her trust made snakes appear out of the basket, and in terror the two girls jumped off the Acropolis to their deaths. The sanctuary of Aglauros lies at the foot of the cliff; it may have been the precinct to which the arrhephoroi descended. Pandrosos, who did not succumb to this fatal curiosity, has a shrine next to the sacred olive tree on the Acropolis itself. The connection was to celebrate Pandrosos