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This book is the only up-to-date general introduction to ancient Greek sport now available in English.Its subjects include the origins and history of the Olympic games, athletic nudity, professionalism, and the place of women in Greek sport.Accessible to nonspecialists, its overall perspective and discussions of many particular problems will also interest experts in Greek history and sport studies. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Unfortunately, only useful for students
I was not impressed at all with this book. This is not really a book; its merely a collection of essays written for a university course on Greek Athletics. I do not consider the writer a good author, and would recommend readers to find interesting educational books on this same subject, elsewhere. ... Read more

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The original Olympics were the most exciting event of the ancient Greek life. This book transports the reader back to 100 BC to find out about horses and trainers, gods and judges, runners and wrestlers.

• Why was the chariot race the most exciting event of the games?
• What did Zeus, the king of gods, have to do with the original Olympics?
• who was the most famous athlete of the ancient games?

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As Athens prepares for 2004, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, proudly presents the original Olympics in all their sweaty, heroic glory. Like today, sports were a vital part of daily life in ancient Greece. Games for the Gods unearths the original traditions of athletics, highlighting both the fascinating similarities and the jarring differences between the ancient ways and our own. We might not be used to such Classical customs as associating athletic festivals with certain gods, seeing our athletes compete in the nude, or having them indulge in dirty fighting as accepted practice (then again...), but the excitement of competition, admiration for athletic skill, and adoration of champions--as well as several of the sports--are just as familiar to fans today as they were to the ancients. The Greek games here come to life in a series of texts that explore the Olympics then and now, the origins of the games and various athletic events, and the ways in which the contests were prepared for and the victors honored. With stunning illustrations of over 140 sculptures, vases, and coins, as well as photographs of modern athletes, Games for the Gods is a unique celebration of the Olympic spirit through the ages.

Essays by John J. Herrmann Jr. and Christine Kondoleon.

Foreword by Bill Littlefield.

Clothbound, 10 x 9 in. / 224 pgs / 207 color and 10 b&w. ... Read more

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This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishings Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the worlds literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Excellent and creative way to show the Olympics
Knill's text is written in the form of a letter from a young Greek althete, Lykophron, to his cousin, Nikosthenes.The cousin is too young to participate in this religious competitions so Lykophron is telling him what to expect when he can participate.Frankly the age thing is incorrect but the idea is so cool I didn't take a star off.The images are great, Nancy Conkle does an excellent job again with her interpretations of the originals. ... Read more

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Chapters: Commonwealth Games, Multi-Sport Event, Extreme Sport, Paralympic Games, World Games, Ancient Olympic Games, Southeast Asian Games, Pacific Games, Pan American Games, World Interuniversity Games, Youth Olympic Games, Central American and Caribbean Games, World Mind Sports Games, Cotswold Games, Universiade, Empire State Games, Western Canada Summer Games, Lusophony Games, Deaflympics, South American Games, Carifta Games, Canada Games, List of Pan American Games, Aau Junior Olympic Games, Bolivarian Games, Naadam, Goodwill Games, Games of the Small States of Europe, West Asian Games, Eurogames, Asian Indoor Games, Mei-Chu Tournament, Arafura Games, Winter Dew Tour, Yves Rossy, Arctic Winter Games, Thailand National Games, Military Pentathlon, Special Olympics World Games, Panathenaic Games, Military World Games, National Peasants' Games, Spartakiad, Gymnasiade, South Asian Games, Tailteann Games, Pan-Armenian Games, National Games of the People's Republic of China, Thailand National Youth Games, National Sports Festival of Japan, European Youth Olympic Festival, Indian Ocean Island Games, Kingdom Games, Micronesian Games, Respect Gaymes, Black Sea Games, Las Vegas Corporate Challenge, Lg Action Sports World Tour, Ganefo, World Police and Fire Games, Défi Sportif, Women's Islamic Games, Sukma Games, Canusa Games, Nordic Games, Children of Asia International Sports Games, Cplp Games, Afro-Asian Games, North American Indigenous Games, National Congress of State Games, Islamic Solidarity Games, Sports Carnival, Inter-Allied Games, Senior Olympics, State Games of North Carolina, Gravity Games, Commonwealth Youth Games, 3rd World Festival of Youth and Students, Youth Friendship Games, Central African Games, Prairie Rose State Games, Big Sky State Games, Alabama Sports Festival, World Youth Games, Central Asian Games, Rhieia, California State Games, Polish Youth Olympic Days, Aryan Games, Canadian Paralympic Athletics Cha...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=19098431 ... Read more

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Chapters: Sherden, Theogony, Sea Peoples, Ancient Olympic Games, Lelantine War, Dorian Invasion, History of the Greek Alphabet, Ancient Greek Dialects, Greek Dark Ages, Bryges, Works and Days, Amphictyonic League, Lemnian Language, First Sacred War, Dipylon Inscription, Denyen, Codrus, Fayum Alphabet, Iron Age Anatolia, Late Helladic Period. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 167. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: The Sea Peoples is the term used for a confederacy of seafaring raiders of the second millennium BC who sailed into the eastern Mediterranean, caused political unrest, and attempted to enter or control Egyptian territory during the late 19th dynasty and especially during Year 8 of Ramesses III of the 20th Dynasty. The Egyptian Pharaoh Merneptah explicitly refers to them by the term "the foreign-countries (or 'peoples') of the sea" (Egyptian ) in his Great Karnak Inscription. Although some scholars believe that they invaded Cyprus, Hatti and the Levant, this hypothesis is disputed. The Late Bronze Age in the Aegean was characterized by the raiding of migratory peoples and their subsequent resettlement. The identity of the Sea Peoples has remained enigmatic to modern scholars, who have only the scattered records of ancient civilizations and archaeological analysis to inform them. Evidence shows that the identities and motives of these peoples were not unknown to the Egyptians. In fact, many had been subordinate to the Egyptians or in a diplomatic relationship with them for at least as long as the few centuries covered by the records. Some groups were not included in the Egyptian list of Sea Peoples, as they operated primarily on land. Among them were the 'prw (Habiru) of Egyptian inscriptions, or 'apiru of cuneiform ("bandits"). Sandars uses the analogous name "land peoples." ...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=324954 ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Chariot racing was one of the most popular ancient Greek, Roman and Byzantine sports. Chariot racing was often dangerous to both driver and horse they frequently suffered serious injury and even death but generated strong spectator enthusiasm. In the ancient Olympic Games, as well as the other Panhellenic Games, the sport was one of the most important equestrian events. In the Roman form of chariot racing, teams represented different groups of financial backers and sometimes competed for the services of particularly skilled drivers. These teams became the focus of intense support among spectators, and occasional disturbances broke out between followers of different factions. The conflicts sometimes became politicized, as the sport began to transcend the races themselves and started to affect society overall. This helps explain why Roman and later Byzantine emperors took control of the teams and appointed many officials to oversee them. ... Read more

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The Olympic Games or as they were called at the time pronounced Olympí'a with the accent on i) were a series of athletic competitions held for representatives of various city-states of Ancient Greece. Records indicate that they began in 776 BC in Olympia, Greece. They were celebrated until 393 AD. The Games were usually held every four years, or olympiad, as the unit of time came to be known. During a celebration of the Games, an Olympic Truce was enacted to enable athletes to travel from their countries to Olympia in safety. The prizes for the victors were laurel wreaths, palm branches, sometimes even food for life. The ancient Olympics were rather different from the modern Games. There were fewer events, and only free men who spoke Greek could compete (even though a woman is also mentioned as a winner), athletes from any country / city (famous athletes from as far as Rome and Armenia are mentioned). The Games were always held at Olympia instead of moving around to different places at each separate Olympic event as is the case for modern Olympics. ... Read more

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Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: Long Jump, Discus Throw, Javelin Throw, Pankration, Chariot Racing, Ancient Greek Boxing, Greek Wrestling, Ancient Olympic Pentathlon, Dolichos, Hoplitodromos, Stadion, Diaulos, Herald and Trumpet Contest. Excerpt:Boxer of Quirinal resting after contest (bronze sculpture , 300 200 BC) Ancient Greek boxing dates back to at least the eighth century BC (Homer's Iliad ), and was practiced in a variety of social contexts in different Greek city-states. Most extant sources about ancient Greek boxing are fragmentary or legendary, making it difficult to reconstruct the rules, customs and history surrounding this activity in great detail. Still, it is clear that gloved boxing bouts were a significant part of ancient Greek athletic culture throughout the early classical period. Origins Minoan youths boxing (1500 BC), Knossos fresco. Earliest evidence for use of gloves. There is archeological and artistic evidence of ancient Greek boxing ( - pux or - pugme in ncient Greek ) as early as the Minoan and Mycenaean periods. There are numerous legends about the origins of boxing in Greece . One legend holds that the heroic ruler Theseus invented a form of boxing in which two men sat face to face and beat each other with their fists until one of them was killed. In time, the boxers began to fight while standing and wearing gloves (with spikes) and wrappings on their arms below the elbows, although otherwise they competed naked. According to the Iliad , Mycenaean warriors included boxing among their competitions honoring the fallen, though it is possible that the Homeric epics reflect later Greek culture. Boxing was among the contests held in memorial of Achilles ' slain friend Patroclus, toward the end of the Trojan war. It was in commemoration of Patroclus that the Greeks later introduced boxi... ... Read more

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The first Olympic athletes stepped into the great stadium in Olympia in 776 b.c.e. Held every four years, the Olympic Games were the most important sporting events in ancient Greece. Wars and arguments of the Greek city-states were put aside while Greece’s

... Read more

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Chapters: Wrestling, Olympia, Greece, Pentathlon, Olympiad, Epinikion, Ancient Olympics in Various Places, Chronicon, Phlegon of Tralles, Hellanodikai, Agriopas, Alytarches. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 76. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: The Olympic Games (Ancient Greek: - ta Olympia; Modern Greek: - Olympiakoi Agones) were a series of athletic competitions held for representatives of various city-states of Ancient Greece held in honor of Zeus. The exact origins of the Games are shrouded in myth and legend but records indicate that they began in 776 BC in Olympia in Greece. They were celebrated until 393 AD when they were suppressed by Theodosius I as part of the campaign to impose Christianity as a state religion. The Games were usually held every four years, or olympiad, as the unit of time came to be known. During a celebration of the Games, an Olympic Truce was enacted so that athletes could travel from their countries to the Games in safety. The prizes for the victors were olive wreaths or crowns. The Games became a political tool used by city-states to assert dominance over their rivals. Politicians would announce political alliances at the Games, and in times of war, priests would offer sacrifices to the gods for victory. The Games were also used to help spread Hellenistic culture throughout the Mediterranean. The Olympics also featured religious celebrations and artistic competitions. A great statue of Zeus, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world was erected in Olympia to preside over the Games. Sculptors and poets would congregate each olympiad to display their works of art to would-be patrons. The ancient Olympics were rather different from the modern Games. There were fewer events, and only free men who spoke Greek could compete (although a woman, Bilistic...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=19098431 ... Read more

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"Bribery, scandal and cheating were as much a part of the ancient Olympics as they are today..." ... Read more

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Chapters: Ancient Olympic Sports, Long Jump, Discus Throw, Javelin Throw, Pankration, Chariot Racing, Hoop Rolling, Kottabos, Ancient Greek Boxing, Greek Wrestling, Ancient Olympic Pentathlon, Dolichos, Hoplitodromos, Stadion, Diaulos, Episkyros, Herald and Trumpet Contest. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 109. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength, and agility in an attempt to leap as far from the take-off point as possible. Competitors run down a runway (usually coated with the same rubberized surface as running tracks, crumb rubber also vulcanized rubber) and jump as far as they can from behind a foul line (commonly referred to as the "board", and usually defined by the trailing edge of a takeoff board embedded flush with the runway surface, or a painted mark on the runway) into a pit filled with finely ground gravel or sand. The distance traveled by a jumper is often referred to as the "mark" because it is the distance to the nearest mark made in the sand from the foul line. If the competitor starts the leap with any part of the foot past the foul line, the jump is declared illegal and no distance is recorded. At the elite level, a layer of plasticine is placed immediately after the board to detect this occurrence. Otherwise, an official (similar to a referee) will watch the jump and make the determination. The competitor can initiate the jump from any point behind the foul line; however, the distance measured will always be from the foul line. Therefore, it is in the best interest of the competitor to get as close to the foul line as possible. Usually, each competitor has a set number of attempts (typically three) to make his or her longest jump, and only the longest legal jump counts towards the resu...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=18084 ... Read more

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Chapters: Ancient Olympic Competitors, Competitors at the 1932 Summer Olympics, Philip Ii of Macedon, Alcibiades, Milo of Croton, Hiero I of Syracuse, Attalus I, Cynisca, Gaius Shaver, Alexander I of Macedon, Dioxippus, Archelaus I of Macedon, Diagoras of Rhodes, Ergoteles of Himera, Theron of Acragas, Arybbas of Epirus, Chilon of Patras, Cylon of Athens, Pyrrhias of Aetolia, Chionis of Sparta, Theagenes of Thasos, Timasitheus of Delphi, Bilistiche, Leonidas of Rhodes, Agasias of Arcadia, Coroebus of Elis, Euryleonis, Astylos of Croton, Polydamas of Skotoussa, Philinus of Cos, Kleitomachos, Acanthus of Sparta, Damarchus, Philippus of Croton, Troilus of Elis, Chaeron of Pellene, Sostratus of Pellene, Xenophon of Corinth, Herodorus of Megara, Diocles of Corinth, Agesarchus of Tritaea, Onomastus of Smyrna, Oebotas of Dyme, Sotades of Crete, Xenophon of Aegium, Desmon of Corinth, Orsippus, Anticles of Messenia, Oxythemis of Coroneia, Hypenus of Elis, Polychares of Messenia, Diocles of Messenia, Leochares of Messenia, Dotades of Messenia, Xenocles of Messenia, Aristolycus of Athens, Micinas of Rhodes, Anticles of Athens, Demosthenes the Laconian, Damasias of Amphipolis, Criton the Macedonian, Smicrinas of Taras, Grylus of Chalcis, Cleomantis of Cleitor, Polycles of Cyrene, Lampus of Philippi. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 203. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Alcibiades Cleiniou Scambonides (pronounced (listen), Greek: , transliterated Alkibiáds Kleiníou Skambnids meaning Alcibiades, son of Cleinias, from the deme of Skambonidai; c. 450404 BC), was a prominent Athenian statesman, orator, and general. He was the last famous member of his mother's aristocratic family, the Alcmaeonidae, which fell from prominence after the Peloponnesian War. He played a major role in the second half of t...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=61322 ... Read more