West European Studies

Ancient Greece (also known as the Birthplace of western civilization) was the archaic period dating from 8th century BC to 146 BC and lasted till the Roman conquest of Greece (Battle of Corinth) giving rise to the Greco-Roman world. Conversely, Rome was one of the largest realms of the ancient world which founded around 10th century BC in the Italian Peninsula along the Mediterranean Sea. As Rome was highly inspired by the culture of ancient Greece, classical antiquity was the term given to these civilizations. This paper discusses the Greek and Roman leisure activities (games) and famous heroes and the sculptures of Roman athletes which were influenced by Greek culture.
   
The Olympic Games began about 2500 years ago in Elis, Greece and were a part of the religious festival. There were 4 sets of games which were predominant in Greece Olympic Games (776 BC), Pythian Games (582 BC), Isthmian Games (581 BC) and Nemean Games (573 BC). They were also known as Crown Games, Sacred Games, Circuit Games or Period Games. There were 4 running events stade (200 mtrs), diaulos (400 mtrs), dolichos (long distance) and hoplitodromos (race in armour). Other games were wrestling, boxing, pankration, pentathlon (long jump, discus, javelin, running and wrestling) and horseracing. The Olympic Games were sacred to the Greek God Zeus and took place every 4 years. The Greeks also possessed an army as described by A. Daniel Frankforter in The West A Narrative History. He writes,

The Dark-Age battles that Homer describes were free-for-alls, simultaneous single combats fought by heavily armoured champions who were carried about a battlefield in chariots. The Greek infantry soldier was called a hoplite-from his hoplos, a shield shaped like a round, shallow bowl that was his most distinctive piece of equipment. Hoplite battles were intended to be brief and murderous. Sports and athletic activities were not mere entertainment for the Greeks. They provided the physical training that prepared a man for the military duties of citizenship and preserved his life. (76) Men considered women as inferior creatures and a citizen woman had the same legal status as her children, but unlike her sons, she was a life-long dependent. (78)

Frankforter further describes that,
The Spartans possessed the most intimidating army in Greece and had a professional army. This was due to the simple reason that Spartans were the only Greeks who could devote all their time to training and physical conditioning. (79-80)

During the Imperial Roman period the games dealt with advocating worldwide unity amongst churches and religions. Donald S. Gochberg in Classics of Western Thought The Ancient World (section Homers Illiad) describes the various games played in ancient Rome, and the relationship between games and funerals. The Trojans were mourning Hector whom Achilles (Greek Hero of the Trojan War and the main character of Homers Illiad) slew as Hector had killed Patroclus, Achilles friend. In honour of his dead friend, Achilles announced games and prizes for all who competed. The first event (announced by Achilles) was a chariot race for which he offered various prizes such a woman skilled in fine crafts and tripod for the winner and mares, a fine kettle, two talents of gold and a two handled pan for various runners up. (23-24) The second event- a boxing fight has been described between Epeius and Euryalus. (33) The third event was the all-in wrestling announced by Achilles and prizes were brought out were the winner receiving a big three-legged cauldron and the loser receiving a woman skilled in domestic work. (33) The next event was the foot-race for which Achilles offered prizes as well. Achilles offered a mixing-bowl of chased silver to the winner and the runner up would receive a large well-fattened ox and the last man (third) would receive half a talent of gold. (34) The foot race between Odysseus, Aias and Antilochus is well illustrated with Odysseus winning the race. (35) The next game- a gladiator fight is well depicted between Aias and Doimedes. Achilles brings a long shadowed spear, shield, helmet and arms that were required during the fight and asked the men to fight each other after putting on their armour with naked weapons. (36) The next game brought forward by Achilles was discus played by Polypoetes, Leonteus, Aias and Epeius wherein the winner was awarded a lump of pig iron. (36) Archery came next with Achilles offering violet coloured iron in the form of axes. (37) Finally the game of javelin was called to play for but without playing the bronze spear was given to Meriones with Agamemnons consent. (37-38) It is to be noted here that only men were entitled to compete in the games with women allowed only to enter horses in the equestrian events. In their leisure time, Romans also played board games (counters and dice) and enjoyed hunting.

Greek Demigod Herakles
Herakles (or Hercules-the glory of Hera) was the greatest and the most popular hero of ancient Greece. His deeds of bravery are notable in tales, sculptures and paintings of the primordial world. Herakles went on to perform 12 labors for Eurystheus, King of Mycenae in order to cleanse evil from his spirit (as in a fit of madness he had killed his wife and children). The 12 labors were to kill the  HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiNemean_lion o Nemean lion Nemean lion, to destroy the  HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiLernaean_Hydra o Lernaean Hydra Lernaean Hydra, to capture the  HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiCeryneian_Hind o Ceryneian Hind Ceryneian Hind, to capture the  HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiErymanthian_Boar o Erymanthian Boar Erymanthian Boar, to clean the  HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiAugeas l The_Fifth_Labour_of_Heracles o Augeas Augean Stables, to kill the  HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiStymphalian_Birds o Stymphalian Birds Stymphalian Birds, to capture the  HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiCretan_Bull o Cretan Bull Cretan Bull, to round up the  HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiMares_of_Diomedes o Mares of Diomedes Mares of Diomedes, to steal the Girdle of  HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiHippolyte o Hippolyte Hippolyte, to herd the Cattle of  HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiGeryon o Geryon Geryon, to fetch the Apples of  HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiHesperides o Hesperides Hesperides, and to capture  HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiCerberus o Cerberus Cerberus. After the 12 labors, Hercules rescued the princess of Troy from a hungry sea-monster and helped Zeus in winning a battle for the rule of Olympus. Herakles was enthusiastically adopted by the Romans, who called him Hercules. In this sculpture, he is identified by the skin of the Nemean Lion and the club, white poplar leaves and a fillet (ribbon). The fillet marks him as an athletic victor, and the white poplar (imported from north-western Greece) was associated with the Olympic Games which the hero has been credited with founding in honour of his father, Zeus. Similar statues were seen in Greek and Roman gymnasiums where athletes trained.

The Athenian hero Theseus
Theseus is known to be the legendary founder of Athens. He has been credited with establishing democracy and unifying Athens. He also founded the great festival Panathenaia in honor of Athena, patron Goddess of Athens. According to Plutarch, Theseus was a brave warrior who made Athens be inhabited. When Theseus was 16, he lifted a rock and took it to Athens by land. Like Herakles, Theseus treaded many dangerous paths (full of robbers and murderers) during his journey to Athens. In this figure, his achievements are displayed. He slew Periphetes, the club bearer and carried his club thereafter, killed Sinis by stretching him between a pine tree, killed a wild and savage beast Phaia-the fierce sow of Crommoyon, killed the robber Skiron who made people wash his feet and then killed them while they bended, defeated and killed the bandit Prokrustes and cleared Athens from bandits, recaptured the bull of Marathon which had been set free by Eurystheus when Herakles had caught it. Theseus finally reached Athens but his adventures did not end there. A few more depicted on this figure are Theseus retrieved the signet ring thrown by King Mynos into the ocean (along with a jewelled crown given to him by the Nereids), he killed a stupendous bull man-minotaur who lived in the labyrinth, he travelled to take the girdle of Hippolyte (queen of the Amazon) who returned with him to Athens, and lastly Theseus fought a centaur (half man-half horse) while the centaur tried to take away the bride of King Perithoos during his wedding.  Theseus has appeared in compositions by many authors and on innumerable vases.

Roman Game  Boxing
Boxing in Rome originated from Etruscan Boxing. There were two types Athletic Boxing and Gladiatorial Boxing. Boxing (pugilatus) of the Romans was extremely brutal as compared to the Greeks. Sharp thongs were used by the Greeks in boxing which were replaced by the Romans. They substituted the leather knuckleduster with a metal insert thereby developing a glove known as caestus which represented a murderous weapon. In this figure, the mosaic floor with a boxing scene (Gallo-Roman, from present day Villelaure, France about A.D. 175 in stone and glass) depicts the scene in Virgils Aeneid of the famous match between Trojan hero Dares and Sicilian champion Entellus. This match was staged in Sicily by Aeneas to honor his father Anchises who had been buried there earlier. Entellus defeats Dares and blood spurts from Dares head. In Virgils Aeneid, Virgil describes the gloves of Entellus (though he uses lighter gloves in the match on the request of Dares which was complied by Aeneas) which had been used by his brother Eryx, still stained with blood and splattered brains (sanguine cernis adhuc sparsoque infecta cerebro). (20) Entellus after winning sacrifices his prize-a bull bedecked with gold ribbons. To demonstrate how destructive the caestus can be, Entellus delivers a blow on the bulls head and killed it by fracturing its skull, proving the fatality of such blows. Virgils story in Aeneid has been immortalized in the mosaic depicting the triumphant Entellus, his injured opponent, the dying bull and the metal knuckleduster on the caesti, with blunted edges.

Marble sculpture of a Roman Athlete, A.D. 75-100
Roman sculpture was highly influenced by the Greeks largely by the style of Lysippos who was a 4th cent. BC Greek sculptor. He was from Sicyon, near Corinth and Hellenistic sculpture was based on the style he introduced. Lysippos produced almost 1500 works of art, the subjects being heroes, gods and athletes (he was the head of the athletic school of Pelopponese) with sizes ranging from small bronze statues to 60 ft high. His works also include numerous statues of Alexander the Great after 340 B.C. The other most famous statues are the figure of an athlete Apoxyomenus in the Vatican and the Agias at  HYPERLINK httpwww.encyclopedia.comtopicDelphi.aspx Delphi. Many Roman sculptures were carved in Lysippos style which he had taught himself by studying nature and the proportions of Doryphorus (Spearbearer) set by canon of Polyclitus. He shaped a new style by creating a smaller head, slender body by elongating the limbs and muscles close-lying that seemed to make his figures appear taller and more statuesque. The torso, head and limbs face in separate directions representing a brief change of action thereby indication lifelike naturalism. He also took great interest in detailing other features such as hair, eyelids and toe nails of his marble figures. In this Roman athletes sculpture by Lysippos, the elongated body, lighter musculature, nuanced pose and soft facial features are evident thereby depicting restless energy and the sense of an action caught in time.