lithobolia

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. Stone-throwing, as a superstitious ceremony or traditional custom. This custom was common in ancient Greece, but was especially associated with the Damia and Auxesia at Trœzen, in which the women pelted each other with stones. There seems to have been also a lithobolia at the Eleusinia. The custom appears in the Roman festivals of the Nonæ Caprotinæ and Lupercalia. It has been found in Poland and other countries.