Archive

O.A. Davydova (Moscow) – Victories of Hellenistic Rulers in Sports Competitions of Ancient Greece

download PDF

Abstract

The article discusses the relationship between such a phenomenon as the participation and victories of the rulers of the Hellenistic kingdoms in pan-Greek competitions and foreign policy circumstances and domestic policy challenges faced by the ruler who won the victories. Written and epigraphic sources attest to the victories of the kings and queens of the Hellenistic states in Greek sports competitions, in particular victories in chariot races pulled by two or four horses. Moreover, more than half of the known victories were won by the rulers of the Ptolemaic dynasty. Most likely, triumphs in the sports games in Olympia, Delphi or Corinth helped the Egyptian kings to strengthen ties with the Greek elite in Alexandria. It is noteworthy that some members of the dynasty participated in chariot races at a young age and even before they took the throne of Egypt. This could have had a symbolic meaning and contained a programmatic message to the Greek part of the population of Egypt. Particular attention should be paid to the participation of the Ptolemaic queens, whose chariots won the races on more than one occasion, as this not only contributed to the strengthening of the queens’ prestige and infl uence at court, but also had a great infl uence on the development of their cult. There is also a correlation between the participation of the king or queen in sports competitions and the foreign policy situation: victory in the games was necessary to change the mood of the elites, to divert attention from problems, or to strengthen their position at court in the context of a power struggle. In other states (Cyrenaica, Macedonia, and Pergamon), the participation of members of the royal dynasty in Greek sports competitions was rare, but was also conditioned by foreign policy circumstances.

Keywords

Hellenism, Ptolemies, Olympic Games, Panathenaic Games, cult of the Ptolemaic queens.

Olga A. Davydova

Institute of World History of the Russian Academy of Science, Moscow, Russia

E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Bennett, C. 2005: Arsinoe and Berenice at the Olympics. Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik 154, 91–96.

Clayman, D.L. 2014: Berenice II and the Golden Age of Ptolemaic Egypt. Oxford.

Dillon, M. 2000: Did Parthenoi Attend the Olympic Games? Girls and Women Competing, Spectating, and Carrying out Cult Roles at Greek Religious Festivals. Hermes 128(4), 457–480.

Fantuzzi, M. 2003: The Structure of the Hippika in P. Mil. Vogl. VIII 309. In: B. Acosta-Hughes, E. Kosmetatou, M. Baumbach (eds.), Labored in Papyrus Leaves. Perspectives on an Epigram Collection Attributed to Posidippus (P. Migl. Vogl. VIII 309). Cambridge, 212–224.

Gutzwiller, K. 2005: The New Posidippus: A Hellenistic Poetry Book. Oxford.

Hansen, E.V. 1971: The Attalids of Pergamon. London.

Hauben, H. 1989: Aspects du culte des souverains à l’époque des Lagides. In: L. Criscuolo, G. Geraci (eds.), Egitto e storia antica dall’Ellenismo all’età araba: bilancio di un confronto. Colloquio internazionale, Bologna, 31 août-2 septembre 1987. Bologne, 441–467.

Hazzard, R.A. 2000: Imagination of a Monarchy: Studies in Ptolemaic Propaganda. Toronto.

Hölbl, G. 2000: A History of the Ptolemaic Empire. London.

Kyle, D.G. 2013: Greek Female Sport. Rites, Running, and Racing. In: P. Christesen, D.G. Kyle (eds.), A Companion to Sport and Spectacle in Greek and Roman Antiquity. Hoboken, 258–275.

Mann, C., Isaksen, L. 2015: Athletes and Spaces in the Hellenistic World, Conference theses: Digital Classics: Methods, Scholarly Communication and Genres of Scholarly. [Электронный ресурс]. Режим доступа: https://www.altphil.uni-freiburg.de/texte-messen/dateien/digital_classics_abstracts/mann-isaksen.pdf.

Mann, C., Scharff, S. 2020: Horse Races and Chariot Races in Ancient Greece: Struggling for Eternal Glory. IJHS 37(37), 163–182.

Mooren, L. 1974: The Governors General of the Thebaid in the Second Century BC (II). Ancient Society 5, 137–152.

Müller, C.A 2014: Koinon after 146? Reflections on the Political and Institutional Situation of Boeotia in the Late Hellenistic Period. In: N. Papazarkadas (ed.), The Epigraphy and History of Boeotia: New Finds, New Prospects. Leiden, 119–146.

Müller, S. 2020: Berenike II. In: E.D. Carney, S. Müller (eds.), The Routledge Companion to Women and Monarchy in the Ancient Mediterranean World. London, 84–95.

Pfeiffer, S. 2020: Royal Women and Ptolemaic Cults. In: E.D. Carney, S. Müller (eds.), The Routledge Companion to Women and Monarchy in the Ancient Mediterranean World. London, 96–107.

Pomeroy, S. 1990: Women in Hellenistic Egypt: from Alexander to Cleopatra. Detroit.

Remijsen, S. 2009: Challenged by Egyptians: Greek Sports in the Third Century BC. IJHS 26(2), 246–271.

Sales, J. das C. 2020: Arsínoe II (Dinastia Ptolomaica). Hapi. Revista da Associação Cultural de Amizade Portugal-Egipto 7, 106–145.

Sauneron, S. 1960: Un document égyptien relatif à la divinisation de la reine Arsinoé II. The Bulletin de l’Institut Français d’Archéologie Orientale 60, 83–109.

Smirnov, S. 2018: A Note on Three Hellenistic Coins from the Collections of Russian Museums. Historia i Świat 7, 25–34.

van Nijf, O.M., Williamson, C.G. 2013: Netwerken, panhelleense festivals en de globalisering van de Hellenistische wereld. Groniek. Historisch Tijdschrift 200, 253–265.

Wacker, C. 2016: Women in Ancient Greece – Did They Take Part in Sport? Journal of Olympic History 3, 27–34.

Winnicki, J.K. 1991: Der zweite syrische Krieg im Lichte des demotischen Karnak-Ostrakons und der griechischen Papyri des Zenon-Archivs. Journal of Juristic Papyrology 21, 87–104.

Details
Hits: 20