DEDICATION OF STATUES AT OLYMPIA AND ELSEWHERE.
Not only did equestrian contests and the pentathlon give the victor an opportunity to represent the means by which he gained his prize, but any victorious athlete could set up a statue of himself in his own honor, which might either represent him in the characteristic attitude of his contest (perhaps with its distinguishing attributes) or might be a simple monument showing neither action nor attribute. This brings us to the main subject of the present work—the discussion of the different types of victor statues at Olympia.
Of all the national games of Hellas, our knowledge of Olympia is fullest, both because of the detailed account of its monuments by Pausanias, who visited Elis in 173 or 174 A. D., and because of the systematic excavation of the Altis by the German government in the seventies of the last century. We shall not be concerned, except incidentally, with monuments set up at the other national games, which are known to us in no such degree as those of Olympia. The interest of Pausanias in Delphi was almost entirely of a religious nature, and the lesser renown of both Nemea and the Isthmus caused him to treat their topography and monuments in a most summary manner. Though the Pythia as a festival were second only to the Olympia, as an athletic meet they scarcely equalled the Nemea or the Isthmia. From the earliest days music was the chief competition at Delphi; the oldest and most important event in the musical programme there all through Greek history was the Hymn to Apollo, sung with the accompaniment of the lyre, in which was celebrated the victory of the god over the Python. By 582 B. C. singing to the flute (αὐλῳδία) was also added, but was almost immediately discontinued. In the same year a flute solo was also inaugurated.[211] In 558 B. C. lyre-playing was introduced. Under the Roman Empire poetic and dramatic competitions were prominent, but the date of their introduction is not known. Pliny mentions contests in painting.[212] After music the equestrian contests were the most important, even rivalling those of Olympia. By 586 B. C., as we have seen, athletic events were inaugurated. The athletic importance of the games on the Isthmus was inferior to that of Olympia and its religious character to that of Delphi, though these games were the most frequented of all the great national ones, because of the accessibility of the place and its nearness to Corinth.[213] The inferiority of the athletics here may be judged by the fact that Solon assigned only 100 drachmæ to an Isthmian victor, while 500 were given to one from Olympia.[214] We have little knowledge of these games through the great period of Greek history, only a reference here and there to a victor.[215] We know much more of them under the Romans, when the prosperity of Corinth was revived; at that time, however, there was little true interest in athletics. Corinth then spent great sums in procuring wild animals for the arena.[216] Excavations have added little to our knowledge of these games.[217] The interest at Nemea in athletics was second only to that of Olympia.[218] While music was the most important feature at Delphi, and the Isthmian games were attended chiefly for the attractions of the neighboring Corinth, there was nothing but the games themselves to attract people to the retired valley of Nemea. Athletic contests were the only feature here until late times and great attention was paid to those of boys.[219] The records of the victors at these games are very scanty.[220]
At all these three games victor monuments were set up, though in no such profusion as at Olympia.
Of those set up at Delphi, Pausanias shows his disdain by these words: “As to the athletes and musical competitors who have attracted no notice from the majority of mankind, I hold them hardly worthy of attention; and the athletes who have made themselves a name have already been set forth by me in my account of Elis.”[221] He mentions the statue of only one victor, that of Phaÿllos, who won at Delphi twice in the pentathlon and once in running. A score or more of inscriptions in honor of these men whom Pausanias treats so contemptuously have been recovered. Some of them record offerings dedicated for victories, though most of them record decrees passed by the Delphians, who voted the victors not only wreaths of laurel, but seats of honor at the games and other privileges.[222] Victor statues seem to have stood outside the sacred precinct at Delphi and not within it, as at Olympia, since Pausanias mentions the sanctuary after mentioning the statue of Phaÿllos.[223] Other Greek and Roman writers give us stray hints of these statues. Thus, Pliny mentions a statue at Delphi of a pancratiastes by Pythagoras of Rhegion[224] and says that Myron made Delphicos pentathlos, pancratiastas.[225] A scholion on Pindar[226] mentions the helmeted statue of the hoplite runner Telisikrates as standing in the precinct. Justin, in speaking of the Gallic invasion of Delphi, mentions statuasque cum quadrigis, quarum ingens copia procul visebatur, thus referring to large chariot-groups, which would be very sightly on the slope of the precinct.[227] An idea of the beauty of such groups may be gathered from the remnant of one, the bronze Charioteer discovered by the French excavators, which is one of the most important archaic sculptures from antiquity (Fig. [66]).[228]
We know from the words of Pausanias[229] that victor statues also stood on the Isthmus, and we should assume the same for Nemea, though in both places they must have been few in number. At the various local games it was customary for victors to erect statues of themselves. Thus we know of such dedications at the Bœotian games in Thebes,[230] at the Didymaion,[231] and at the Lykaia in Arkadia.[232] Many such victor statues decorated different localities of Athens. Thus, on the Akropolis, we know of the statues of the hoplite runner Epicharinos,[233] of the pancratiast Hermolykos,[234] of a helmeted man by the sculptor Kleoitas,[235] of a παῖς κελητίζων representing Isokrates;[236] in the Prytaneion, of the statue of the pancratiast Autolykos.[237] Lykourgos, the rhetor, mentions victor statues in the agora of Athens.[238] Some of these Athenian statues may have been those of Olympic victors;[239] and of victors certainly Olympic we know of the statues of Kallias the pancratiast,[240] of the charioteer Hermokrates,[241] and of the bronze mares of Kimon.[242] Of the statues of Nemean victors at Athens we know of that of Hegestratos, victor in an unknown contest.[243] Of Isthmian victors there we know of that of the pancratiast Diophanes,[244] and of other examples.[245] We have inscriptional record of the statues at Athens of a boy victor at the Panathenaia and the Thargelia in chariot-racing,[246] of a victor at the Pythia, Isthmia, Nemea, and the Panathenaia,[247] of one at the Nemea and Herakleia at Thebes,[248] of one at the Eleusinia,[249] of one at the Panathenaia and Dionysia,[250] and of others at several games.[251]
The erection of a statue in the Altis at Olympia was an honor which the Elean officers in charge of the games[252] gave to victors to glorify their victory.[253] Pliny, in a well-known passage of the Historia Naturalis,[254] says it was customary for all victors to set up statues, while Pausanias[255] says not all athletes did this, for “some of those who specially distinguished themselves in the games ... have had no statues.” This apparent contradiction in the statements of the two writers is to be explained, as Dittenberger[256] and others have pointed out, on the ground that Pliny states the general privilege extended to the victor, while Pausanias states its practical working out, since the setting up of a statue was an undertaking which would be limited by the early death, poverty, or some other disability of the victorious athlete. The cost of making, transporting, and setting up a statue was considerable, and very often a victor must have been too poor to do it. In such a case he would often be contented to set up merely a statuette or small figure in bronze or marble. Several such bronze figures have been unearthed at Olympia,[257] one of which we reproduce in Fig. [2], and we have many examples found outside the Altis: e. g., a group of wrestlers,[258]
Fig. 2.—Bronze Statuette of a Victor, from Olympia. Museum of Olympia. a boxer,[259] and the arm of a quoit-thrower[260] from the Athenian Akropolis, an archaic girl runner from Dodona,[261] an archaic statuette from Delphi with a loin-cloth,[262] a bronze quoit-thrower dedicated in the Kabeirion,[263] the Tuebingen bronze hoplite runner[264] (Fig. [42]), and the statuette of a παῖς κέλης from Dodona.[265] We should also mention the great number of statuettes of diskos-throwers in modern museums.[266] Boy victors especially would use the less expensive marble for such statuettes and we have the remnants of many such found in the excavations of the Altis.[267] Pausanias mentions several monuments which were less than life-size, e. g., a horse among the offerings of Phormis, which he says was “much inferior in size and shape to all other statues of horses in the Altis,”[268] and the equestrian monuments already discussed. Even reliefs and paintings, in some cases, were offered in lieu of larger monuments, not only for reasons of economy, but also because they gave a better representation of the contest. This custom was common at the lesser games, especially at the Panathenaia.[269] Pausanias mentions painted iconic reliefs vowed by girl runners at the games in honor of Hera at Olympia.[270] On an Attic vase in Munich a victor is represented as holding an iconic votive pinax in his hands.[271] Pausanias speaks of a painting by Timainetos at Athens, which represented a boy carrying hydriæ,[272] and one of a wrestler by the same artist in the Pinakotheke on the Akropolis. Pliny mentions paintings, the works of great masters, representing victors: thus the currentes quadrigae by the elder Aristeides of Thebes,[273] a victor certamine gymnico palmam tenens by Eupompos,[274] an athlete by Zeuxis,[275] the victor Aratos with a trophy by Leontiskos,[276] an athlete by Protogenes,[277] two hoplite runners by Parrhasios,[278] a luctator tubicenque by Antidotos and a warrior by the same artist, in Athens,[279] which represented a man fighting with a shield, and a man anointing himself, the work of the painter Theoros.[280]
Apparently the Hellanodikai allowed but one statue for each victory. Aischines the Elean had two victories and two statues.[281] Dikon of Kaulonia and Syracuse had three victories and three statues.[282] The Spartan Lykinos had two victories and two statues by Myron, but we have already said that the second statue was probably that of his charioteer, the two forming part of an equestrian group.[283] Kapros of Elis won two victories and had as many statues.[284] On the other hand Troilos of Elis, who won in two events, had only one statue.[285] Similarly Arkesilaos of Sparta had two victories in the chariot-race and only one statue.[286] Xenombrotos of Cos, who appears to have won once only, had, however, two monuments, one mentioned by Pausanias and the other known to us from the recovered inscription.[287] But this last case seems to be the only known exception.
When the victor was unable to set up his monument, whether because of youth, poverty, early death, or other reason, sometimes the privilege was utilized by a relative, a friend, or by his native city. In any case it was a private affair with which the Elean officials had no concern. We have examples, consequently, of the statue being set up by the son,[288] father (especially in recovered inscriptions after the time of Augustus),[289] mother,[290] and brother;[291] also several examples of statues reared in honor of athletes by fellow citizens.[292] There are cases in which the trainer set up the statue.[293] Frequently the native city performed the duty, dedicating the statue either at Olympia or in the victor’s city. Thus Oibotas, who won the stade-race in Ol. 6 ( = 756 B. C.), had a statue at Olympia which was erected by the Achæan state out of deference to a command of the Delphian oracle in Ol. 80 ( = 460 B. C.).[294] The statue of Agenor, by Polykleitos the Younger, a boy wrestler from Thebes, was dedicated by the confederacy of Phokis, because his father was a public friend of the nation.[295] The boy runner Herodotos of Klazomenai had a statue erected by his native town at Olympia because he was the first victor from there.[296] Philinos of Kos had a statue set up by the people of Kos at Olympia “because of glory won,” for he was victor five times in running at Olympia, four at Delphi, four at Nemea, and eleven at the Isthmus.[297] Hermesianax of Kolophon had a statue at Olympia erected by his city.[298] The pancratiast Promachos of Pellene had two statues erected to him by his fellow citizens, one at Olympia, the other in Pellene.[299] We know of three state dedications of statues at Olympia from inscriptions, those of Aristophon of Athens,[300] of Epitherses of Erythrai,[301] and of Polyxenos by the people of Zakynthos.[302] Lichas of Sparta, at a date when the Spartans were excluded from the games, entered his chariot in the name of the Theban people, and Pausanias says that his victory was so entered on the Elean register.[303] We learn from the OxyrhynchusPapyri that the public horse of the Argives won at Olympia in Ol. 75 ( = 480 B. C.) and the public chariot in Ol. 77 ( = 472 B. C.).[304] In these latter two cases the public was directly interested, and had there been monuments erected to commemorate the victories they would naturally have been set up by the state.
It has been wrongly assumed that monuments of boy victors were dedicated in the name of their parents or relatives.[305] On the contrary, we have examples dating back to the fifth century B. C. of boys setting up statues at Olympia. Thus the inscription from the base of the statue of Tellon, who won in the boys’ boxing match in Ol. 77 ( = 472 B. C.), states that he dedicated his own statue.[306] Pausanias says that the Eleans allowed the boy wrestler Kratinos from Aigeira to erect a statue of his trainer.[307] Of course the boy might need assistance in the undertaking, but this again was no concern of the Elean officials, who granted the privilege to the victor and not to his relatives. Usually the statue of a victor was erected soon after the victory. We have some examples of the statue being erected immediately after the victory, especially in the case of men victors. Thus Pausanias says that the victor Eubotas of Kyrene, in consequence of a Libyan oracle foretelling his victory in the foot-race, had his statue made before coming to Olympia and erected it “the very day on which he was proclaimed victor.”[308] The famous Milo of Kroton spectacularly carried his statue into the Altis on his back before he entered the contest.[309] There are also examples of statues being erected long after the victory, sometimes centuries later. We have already mentioned that a statue was erected to Oibotas in Ol. 80, though his victory was won in Ol. 6. Chionis, who won in running races in Ols. 28–31 ( = 668–656 B. C.) had a statue by Myron erected to his memory Ol. 77 or 78 ( = 472 or 468 B. C.).[310] Cheilon of Patrai, twice victor in wrestling between Ols. (?) 103 and 115 ( = 368 and 320 B. C.), had his statue set up after his death.[311] Polydamas of Skotoussa won his victory in the pankration in Ol. 93 ( = 408 B. C.), but his statue by Lysippos could not have been erected until many years later.[312] Glaukos, who won the boys’ boxing-match in Ol. 65 ( = 520 B. C.), had a statue by the Aeginetan sculptor Glaukias much later.[313] In the case of boy victors, the time between boyhood and coming of age was often so short that in many cases we may assume that the statue was set up some time after the victory.[314]