Ancient Greek Athletics and Art Module 5 done

Tools and Resources

Figure 2.5.55 depicts a pair of boxers in a bout on a Panathenaic prize amphora.
The boxer on the left has his left arm bent up, right arm back, with a dilute line on his cheek.
His opponent faces left, in a three-quarter back view, with left arm out and right arm drawn back.
The opponent's cheek is marked with relief lines to denote swelling.
Boxing was considered the most violent sport in ancient Greece.
There were no separate rounds; contestants fought until one gave in.
Boxers used thin strips of leather to protect their hands.
Later, boxing gloves were developed, sometimes weighted with lead or iron to inflict greater damage during the Roman period.

Wrestling was a sport of great skill, featuring many throws still seen today.
It was part of the pentathlon, which included discus, javelin, long jump, running, and wrestling.

Figure 2.5.56 shows a Fikellura style amphora with a running man.
The most ancient and prestigious event at Olympia was a running race along the stadium's length, 600 Olympic feet (192.28 meters).
The Olympiad, a four-year period, was named after the winner, and dates were recorded by reference to the list of victors.
Other races included a two-length track race and a long-distance race of twenty to twenty-four lengths.
The marathon was an invention of Baron de Coubertin, who revived the Olympic Games in 1896.
Runners made a standing start from stone slabs with toe-grip grooves.
The runner in the image is painted in silhouette, with inner markings reserved in the clay's natural color.
His pose, with arms and legs fully extended, suggests running at full speed.

Held every fourth year between 776 B.C.E. and 395 C.E. in honor of Zeus.
Attracted people from across Greece.
Included sports like running, discus-throwing, and long-jump.
The games were the oldest and most important of the four national Greek athletic festivals.
Officially held every four years from 776 B.C.E., but likely originated earlier.
Greek myth credits Herakles with devising the running races at Olympia.
Olympia was the most important sanctuary of Zeus, and the Games were held in his honor.
Sacrifices and oaths were made before a statue of Zeus.
Heralds announced the games in major Greek cities, and hostilities were banned during the period around the Games.
The games inspired the modern Olympic Games, first staged in Athens in 1896.

On a fifth-century B.C.E. storage jar, Herakles punishes the Egyptians, but the color dynamics are notable.
Blackness dominates the background, and Herakles has black hair and a black beard, setting him apart from the Egyptians.
Herakles' lion-skin cloak and club are more significant indicators of his identity.
His physiognomy, including a long nose and thin lips, contrasts with the Egyptians' broad noses and full lips.
The image is reminiscent of contemporary discourse about Blackness and may suggest a dangerous connection between violence and the Black male body.
The cover art may mislead viewers about ancient discussions of black skin, as the book's contents do not adequately address this topic.
The permanently violent coding of black skin color is incorrect and irresponsible; there are no historical roots tracing this presumed innate threat.

Museum and academic scholars are key in providing contextualized and equitable perspectives of black people in antiquity.
They curate exhibits and write books that greatly influence vast audiences.
Preconceived notions of Black people are deeply ingrained in our country's collective consciousness.
Without an overhaul of the "black-slaves in perpetuity" trope, damaging stereotypes become ossified as facts.
Ancient Greek art included representations of black people that nimbly provoked and cut across hierarchies.
Objects like the sixth-century B.C.E. head-shaped pitcher and water jar were not part of any chromatic hierarchy because such categories had yet to be codified.

The ancient image allows for a more sophisticated approach to skin color.
Black skin is not limited to those near Herakles; the crouching Egyptian priest and the Egyptian with raised hands also have black skin.
The black lines and patterned designs destabilize any quick interpretation of color.
Skin color is only one element; the main theme is the inverted violence that has occurred.
Herakles' skin tone on this jar is dark red, which is due to the worn state of the jar's surface.
There are numerous examples of this sacrificial scene on ancient Greek pottery, some depicting Herakles with similar skin color to those around him.

A big attraction at all the Greek games were the "heavy" events-wrestling, boxing, and the pankration, a type of all-in wrestling.
Specialists in the sports could win large sums of money all over the Greek world, once they had proved themselves at Olympia.

The pankration was a mixture of boxing and wrestling, where almost any tactic was permitted.
Only biting and going for an opponent's eyes were illegal.
One pankratiast tries to gouge his opponent's eye, while a bearded trainer steps forward with a forked stick to stop the fouls and the fight.