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A group of partygoers wearing paper hats toasts the New Year in the dining room of the Melville Rentsch home at 3740 Forest Manor Ave. Toasts are an ancient ritual. Ulysses drank to the health of Achilles in “The Odyssey.” In ancient Rome, drinking to someone’s health was so important that the Senate demanded all diners drink to their first emperor, Augustus, before every meal.
Sources: Indiana Historical Society, NPR
Credit: This photo is courtesy of the Indiana Historical Society. More images are available at images.indianahistory.org.
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