before a ceremony of initiation
Ancient Greek word, found 11 times in the texts on Socratos.
Euripides, Iphigenia in Aulis 718: προτέλεια δʼ ἤδη παιδὸς ἔσφαξας θεᾷ;
Aeschylus, Agamemnon 65: διακναιομένης τʼ ἐν προτελείοις