DOI article:
Bevier, Louis: The Olympieion at Athens
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.8560#0230
208 THE OLYMPIEION AT ATHENS.
The passage of Pausanias giving an account of his visit to the
Olympieion, which I have already cited more than once, is concerned
chiefly with the peribolos and its contents, and it remains still to
discuss it a little more in detail. The words of Pausanias are as
follows (I. 18, 6—8) : Trplv Se e's to lepbv iivai tov Ato? tov 'OXv/jlttlov,—
avo; 6 Pcotiatcov /3ao~tAeus tov te vaov dveOr/Ke kol to ayaA/m Bias
a£iov, ov /xeyeOei p,er, on fir) PoS'ots fcctt 'Pw/xatot? elcrlv ot KoXocrcrol, to.
XoLrrd dyaXfiaTa o/xotws d.TroXuTrera.1,* 7reiroi7]Tai Se e/< tc iXecf>avTo<; Kal
Xpvcrov Kal e'^et Te'^VTy? eii Trpo; TO /xe'ye^a? bpwcriv, — ivravOa etKoVe?
'ASptavou Swo p,eV etcrt ©acriou XlOov, Suo Se AlyvirrLov. ^aA/cat Se IcrTacn
Trpb twv klovwv us ^ AO qvalot KaXovcTLV dwoLKOVi 7ro'Aets. 6 /xev S>) 7ra? Tvepi-
fioXos oraStwv [jidXtcrTa Tecrcrdpwv ccttlv, dvBptdvTWV Se TrXrjpi]? • drrb yap
7roAea)5 e«ao"T7ys cIkwv 'ASptavoB [3ao~iXews dvaKUTat, Kal cr<£as VTrepej3d-
Xovto 'AQ-qvaZoL tov KoXocrcrbv dvaOevTes OTricrde tov vaov, Seas d^iov.
ccttl Se dp^ola iv tu> 7rept/3dAa) Zeus ^aA/<o{»? Kat i/ads KpoVou Kat 'Peas
«at relievos Tt}? hrLK.Xr)o~LV 'OAu/x7rtas. ivravOa bcrov es 7r?}^(ui/ to e'Sac/>os
Ste'crT7^Ke, /cat Xiyovcrt /xcto. t?p iiropifipiav tyjv eirl AeuKaAtwros avp/3dcrav
VTToppvrp'aL TavTTj to vSwp, icr/3dXXovcri tc es auTO dm 7ray eVos dX<j>iTa
irvpwv /xe'AtTt /xtfavTes. KetTat Se e7rt klovos IcroKpaTOv; dySptas' . . .
KetvTat Se Kat Xl6ov <t>pvyiov Ilepcrat ^aA/cow TptVoSa di/e'^oi/Tes, #eas
a£iot Kat auTot Kat 6 TptVous. tou Se OXv/jotlov Ato; AeuKaAt'cuva otKo-
8ojxrjcrai Aeyoucrt to dp^atov lepov, o-rjpLelov d7ro<£atiWTes ws Aevi<aXiwv
'AOyvqo-lv WKrjcre Ta<f>ov tov vaov tov vvv ov ttoXv dc^ea'tt/KoVa.
There are several things in this narrative that deserve notice. It
is strange at the outset that Pausanias makes no reference whatever
to the Arch of Hadrian, for it is probable that in entering the peri-
bolos he passed under it. Wachsmuth suggests that the arch may
not yet have been built; but this is not very probable, since it seems
to have been the work of Hadrian himself. The propylaeon, which
was laid bare in 1861 in making a road, is semicircular in form, and
built of the same material as the rest of the peribolos wall. It was no
doubt clothed with marble steps, leading up from the level of the
arch to that of the peribolos. So far as can be seen from the walls
* The emendation of oj . . . eiriSelKVvrai to ou . . . a.Tro\^'nv^Tai, which is
adopted by Dindorf, Walz, Bekker, and Schubart, appears to be necessary. It is
evident from this whole passage, and from II. 27, 2, that the size is just what
Pausanias is emphasizing. Siebel and Boeckh (C. I. G., 331) keep the Mss.
text and understand the passage, " not on account of its size, for even disregard-
ing the colossi of Rhodes and Rome the other images are as large."
The passage of Pausanias giving an account of his visit to the
Olympieion, which I have already cited more than once, is concerned
chiefly with the peribolos and its contents, and it remains still to
discuss it a little more in detail. The words of Pausanias are as
follows (I. 18, 6—8) : Trplv Se e's to lepbv iivai tov Ato? tov 'OXv/jlttlov,—
avo; 6 Pcotiatcov /3ao~tAeus tov te vaov dveOr/Ke kol to ayaA/m Bias
a£iov, ov /xeyeOei p,er, on fir) PoS'ots fcctt 'Pw/xatot? elcrlv ot KoXocrcrol, to.
XoLrrd dyaXfiaTa o/xotws d.TroXuTrera.1,* 7reiroi7]Tai Se e/< tc iXecf>avTo<; Kal
Xpvcrov Kal e'^et Te'^VTy? eii Trpo; TO /xe'ye^a? bpwcriv, — ivravOa etKoVe?
'ASptavou Swo p,eV etcrt ©acriou XlOov, Suo Se AlyvirrLov. ^aA/cat Se IcrTacn
Trpb twv klovwv us ^ AO qvalot KaXovcTLV dwoLKOVi 7ro'Aets. 6 /xev S>) 7ra? Tvepi-
fioXos oraStwv [jidXtcrTa Tecrcrdpwv ccttlv, dvBptdvTWV Se TrXrjpi]? • drrb yap
7roAea)5 e«ao"T7ys cIkwv 'ASptavoB [3ao~iXews dvaKUTat, Kal cr<£as VTrepej3d-
Xovto 'AQ-qvaZoL tov KoXocrcrbv dvaOevTes OTricrde tov vaov, Seas d^iov.
ccttl Se dp^ola iv tu> 7rept/3dAa) Zeus ^aA/<o{»? Kat i/ads KpoVou Kat 'Peas
«at relievos Tt}? hrLK.Xr)o~LV 'OAu/x7rtas. ivravOa bcrov es 7r?}^(ui/ to e'Sac/>os
Ste'crT7^Ke, /cat Xiyovcrt /xcto. t?p iiropifipiav tyjv eirl AeuKaAtwros avp/3dcrav
VTToppvrp'aL TavTTj to vSwp, icr/3dXXovcri tc es auTO dm 7ray eVos dX<j>iTa
irvpwv /xe'AtTt /xtfavTes. KetTat Se e7rt klovos IcroKpaTOv; dySptas' . . .
KetvTat Se Kat Xl6ov <t>pvyiov Ilepcrat ^aA/cow TptVoSa di/e'^oi/Tes, #eas
a£iot Kat auTot Kat 6 TptVous. tou Se OXv/jotlov Ato; AeuKaAt'cuva otKo-
8ojxrjcrai Aeyoucrt to dp^atov lepov, o-rjpLelov d7ro<£atiWTes ws Aevi<aXiwv
'AOyvqo-lv WKrjcre Ta<f>ov tov vaov tov vvv ov ttoXv dc^ea'tt/KoVa.
There are several things in this narrative that deserve notice. It
is strange at the outset that Pausanias makes no reference whatever
to the Arch of Hadrian, for it is probable that in entering the peri-
bolos he passed under it. Wachsmuth suggests that the arch may
not yet have been built; but this is not very probable, since it seems
to have been the work of Hadrian himself. The propylaeon, which
was laid bare in 1861 in making a road, is semicircular in form, and
built of the same material as the rest of the peribolos wall. It was no
doubt clothed with marble steps, leading up from the level of the
arch to that of the peribolos. So far as can be seen from the walls
* The emendation of oj . . . eiriSelKVvrai to ou . . . a.Tro\^'nv^Tai, which is
adopted by Dindorf, Walz, Bekker, and Schubart, appears to be necessary. It is
evident from this whole passage, and from II. 27, 2, that the size is just what
Pausanias is emphasizing. Siebel and Boeckh (C. I. G., 331) keep the Mss.
text and understand the passage, " not on account of its size, for even disregard-
ing the colossi of Rhodes and Rome the other images are as large."