Pausanias' description of Greece, Volume I.

by active approximately 150-175 Pausanias

And the statue of Clitomachus the Theban was erected by Hermocrates his father. His exploits were as follows. In the Isthmian games he beat all comers in wrestling, and on one day won prizes from all competitors in boxing and in the pancratium. And all his 3 victories in the Pythian games were in the pancratium. And at Olympia he was proclaimed second to Theagenes of Thasos in the pancratium and in boxing. And in the 141st Olympiad he won the prize in the pancratium. And the next Olympiad found him a competitor in the pancratium and in boxing, and Caprus of Elis was on the same day anxious to compete in the pancratium and in wrestling. And when Caprus had won the wrestling-prize, Clitomachus hinted to the umpires that it was only fair to call for the pancratium before he was battered about by boxing. What he said seemed reasonable, and when the pancratium was called on he was beaten by Caprus, though he exhibited afterwards in the boxing a stout heart and untired body.

And the Ionians of Erythræ erected a statue to Epitherses the son of Metrodorus, who won two victories in boxing at Olympia, and two at each of the Pythian Nemean and Isthmian games, and the Syracusan public erected two statues to Hiero, and his sons erected a third. As I stated a little above this Hiero had the same name as the son of Dinomenes, and was like him Tyrant of Syracuse. And the inhabitants of Pale, one of the four tribes in Cephallenia, set up a statue to Timoptolis of Elis the son of Lampis. These people of Pale were originally called Dulichii. There is also a statue of Archidamus the son of Agesilaus, and a man like a hunter. And the statues of Demetrius, who led an army against Seleucus and was taken prisoner in the battle, and of Antigonus the son of Demetrius, were let any one know votive offerings of the Byzantians. And the Spartan Eutelidas had two victories for wrestling among the boys in the 308th Olympiad, and a third in the pentathlum: at that time the boys were called on first, and last in the pentathlum. And there is an ancient statue of Eutelidas, the writing on the base is obscure through lapse of time. And next to Eutelidas is another one of Areus, the king of the Lacedæmonians, and next him Gorgus of Elis, who is the only man up to my day who had four victories at Olympia in the pentathlum, and one victory for the double course, and one for the race in heavy armour.

And the person by whom some boys are standing is they say Ptolemy the son of Lagus, and next him are two statues of Caprus of Elis, the son of Pythagoras, who won on the same day for the first time on record prizes for wrestling and the pancratium. I have already shown how successful he was against Clitomachus in the pancratium, and he beat in wrestling Pæanius of Elis, who had carried off the prize for wrestling in former Olympiads, and had been crowned in the Pythian games on the same day for boxing among boys, and for wrestling and boxing among men.

CHAPTER XVI.

Caprus won his victories not without great effort and mighty energy: and Anauchidas and Pherenicus, who were natives of Elis, had statues at Olympia, and won prizes for wrestling among the boys. And the Thespians erected the statue of Plistænus, the son of Eurydamus, who was the general of the Ætolians against the Galati. And Tydeus of Elis erected statues to Antigonus, the father of Demetrius, and to Seleucus. And the name of Seleucus was noised abroad among all men on other accounts but chiefly for his capture of Demetrius. And Timon won victories in the pentathlum in all the Greek games but the Isthmian (for like all the other men of Elis he was shut out of competition in them), and the inscription on his statue mentions this further particular about him, that he took part in the expedition of the Ætolians against the Thessalians, and out of friendship to the Ætolians was leader of the garrison at Naupactus. And not far from the statue of Timon are statues of Greece and Elis in juxtaposition: Greece with one hand crowning Antigonus, the Regent for Philip the son of Demetrius, and with the other Philip himself; and Elis crowning Demetrius, who marched against Seleucus, and Ptolemy the son of Lagus.

And the inscription on his statue states that Aristides of Elis won a victory in heavy armour at Olympia, and in the double course in the Pythian games, and as a boy in the horse-race at Nemea. The length of the horse-race is twice the double course. This race, which had fallen into desuetude at the Nemean and Isthmian games, was restored by the Emperor Adrian to the Argives at the winter games at Nemea.

And next to the statue of Aristides is Menalcas of Elis, who was proclaimed victor at Olympia in the pentathlum, and Philonides the son of Zotus, who was from the Cretan Chersonese, and the courier of Alexander the son of Philip. And next is Brimias of Elis, who beat all the men in boxing, and the statue of Leonidas from Naxos in the Ægæan, the votive offering of the Psophidian Arcadians, and the statue of Asamon who beat all the men in boxing, and that of Nicander, who had two victories at Olympia in the double course, and six at Nemea for racing generally. Asamon and Nicander were both natives of Elis, and the statue of the latter was by Daippus, that of the former by the Messenian Pyrilampes. There are statues also to Eualcidas of Elis and Seleadas the Lacedæmonian, the former was victor among the boys in boxing, the latter in wrestling among the men. Here too is the small chariot of the Lacedæmonian Polypithes, and on the same pillar Calliteles (the father of Polypithes) the wrestler, who won victories by his wrestling, as Polypithes by his horses. And the statues of some private individuals of Elis, as Lampus the son of Arniscus, and the son of Aristarchus, were erected by the Psophidian Arcadians, either because they were their Consuls, or were otherwise friendly to them. And between them is Lysippus of Elis, who beat all boys who contended with him in wrestling, his statue is by Andreas the Argive.

And the Lacedæmonian Dinosthenes won a victory over men at Olympia in the course, and set up a pillar in Altis next to his statue: the distance from this pillar by road to another pillar at Lacedæmon is 660 stades. And Theodorus, who was victor in the pentathlum, and Pyttalus, the son of Lampis, who beat all the boys in boxing, and Nicolaidas, who carried off the victory in the course and in the race in heavy armour, were let any one know natives of Elis. As to Pyttalus they record still further that, when there was a dispute between the Arcadians and the men of Elis about their borders, he was made the arbitrator. His statue is by the Olynthian Sthennis. And next is a statue of Ptolemy on horseback, and by him the athlete of Elis Pæanius the son of Demetrius, who won one prize for wrestling at Olympia, and two in the Pythian games. There too is Clearetus of Elis, who won in the pentathlum, and the chariot of the Athenian Glaucon (the son of Eteocles), who was proclaimed victor in the chariot race with a full-grown horse.

CHAPTER XVII.

What I have just mentioned are the most notable things as you approach Altis, but, if you go on the right from the monument of Leonidas to the great altar, you will behold the following memorable objects. There are statues of Democrates of Tenedos and Criannius of Elis, the latter victor in the contest in heavy armour, the former in wrestling among men. The statue of Democrates is by the Milesian Dionysicles, that of Criannius by the Macedonian Lysus. And the Clazomenian Herodotus, and the Coan Philinus, the son of Hegepolis, have statues erected to them by their native cities, to Herodotus because he was the first Clazomenian pronounced victor (his victory was among boys in the course), and to Philinus because of his renown, for he had five victories in running at Olympia, and four in the Pythian games, four in the Nemean, and eleven in the Isthmian. And the statue of Ptolemy, the son of Ptolemy, the son of Lagus, was the offering of Aristolaus a Macedonian. There is also a statue of a boxer who was victorious over boys, Butas the Milesian, the son of Polynices, and Callicrates from Magnesia near the river Lethæus, who won two victories in the race in heavy armour. His statue is by Lysippus. And there are statues of Emaution and Alexibius, the former victor in the course for boys, the latter in the pentathlum. Heræa in Arcadia was the native place of Alexibius and his statue is by Acestor, where Emaution came from the inscription does not state, it only declares he was an Arcadian. And the Colophonians Hermesianax the son of Agoneus, and Icasius the son of Lycinus by the daughter of Hermesianax, beat all the boys in wrestling, and Hermesianax had his statue erected by the Colophonian community.