Maenad

Maenads, possessed by the spirit of Dionysus, traveled with him from Thrace to mainland Greece in his quest for the recognition of his divinity. Dionysus was said to have danced down from Parnassos accompanied by Delphic virgins, and we know that even as young girls the women in Boeotia practiced not only the closed rites but also the bearing of the thyrsos and the dances.