Smith, William: A smaller dictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities (London, 1871)

OLYMPIA.

274:

OLYMPIA.

tcrial, round and plain, and having a wide
mouth ; a pot; a jar.

OLYMPIA (6Av|u.7r<.a), the Olympic games,
the greatest of the national festivals of the
Greeks. It was celebrated at Olympia in
Elis, the name given to a small plain to the
west of Pisa, which was bounded on the
north and north-east by the mountains Cro-
7iius and Olympus, on the south by the river
Alpheus, and on the west by the Cladeus,
which flows into the Alpheus. Olympia does
not appear to have been a town, but rather a
collection of temples and public buildings.
The origin of the Olympic games is buried in
obscurity, but the festival was of very great
antiquity. The first historical fact connected
with this festival is its revival by Iphitus,
king of Elis, who is said to have accomplished
it with the assistance of Lycurgus, the
Spartan lawgiver, and Cleosthcnes of Pisa.
The date of this event is given by some
writers as b. c. 884, and by others as b.c. 828.
The interval of four years between each cele-
bration of the festival was called an Olym-
piad; but the Olympiads were not employed
as a chronological aera till the victory of
Coroebus in the foot-race, n. c. 7 7fi. [Olym-
pus.] The most important point in the
renewal of the festival by Iphitus was the
establishment of the Mcecheiria (e/cexeipta),
or sacred armistice. The proclamation was
made by peace-heralds (trnov&otpopoi), first in
Elis and afterwards in the other parts of
Greece; it put a stop to all warfare for the
month in which the games were celebrated,
and which was called the sacred month (iepo-
pyvia). The territory of Elis itself was con-
sidered especially sacred during the games,
and no armed force could enter it with-
out incurring the guilt of sacrilege. The
Olympic festival was probably confined at
first to the Peloponncsians; but as its cele-
brity extended, the other Greeks took part
in it, till at length it became a festival for
the whole nation. No one was allowed to
contend in the games but persons of pure
Hellenic blood : barbarians might be specta-
tors, but 6laves were entirely excluded.
After the conquest of Greece by the Romans,
the latter were permitted to take part in the
games. Xo women were allowed to be pre-
sent or even to cross the Alpheus during
the celebration of the games, under penalty
of being hurled down from the Typaean
rock, but women could send chariots to
the races. The number of spectators at the
festival was very great; and these were
drawn together not merely by the desire of
seeing the games, but partly through the
opportunity it afforded them of carrying on
commercia1 transactions with persons from

distant places, as is the case with the Mo-
hammedan festivals at Mecca and Medina.
Many of the persons present were also de-
puties (.flewpoi) sent to represent the various
states of Greece; and we find that these
embassies vied with one another in the num-
ber of their offerings, and the splendour of
their general appearance, in order to support
the honour of their native cities. The
Olympic festival was a Pentaeteris (irevTae-
TTjpi's), that is, according to the ancient mode
of reckoning, a space of four years elapsed
between each festival, in the same way as
there was only a space of two years between
a Trieteris. It was celebrated on the first
full moon after the summer solstice. It
lasted, after all the contests had been intro-
duced, five days, from the 11th to the 15th
days of the month inclusive. The fourth day
of the festival was the 14th of the month,
which was the day of the full moon, and
which divided the month into two equal
parts. The festival was under the immediate
superintendence of the Olympian Zeus, whose
temple at Olympia, adorned with the statue
of the god made by Phidias, was one of the
most splendid works of art in Greece. There
were also temples and altars to most of the
other gods. The festival itself may be di-
vided into two parts, the games or contests
(ayiov OAvp.7n.aK6s), and the festive rites
(eopnj) connected with the sacrifices, with the
processions, and with the public banquets in
honour of the conquerors.—The contests con-
sisted of various trials of strength and skill,
which were increased in number from time
to time. There were in all twenty-four eon-
tests, eighteen in which men took part, and
six in which boys engaged, though they were
never all exhibited at one festival, since some
were abolished almost immediately after their
institution, and others after they had been in
use only a short time. "We subjoin a list of
these from Pausanias, with the date of the
introduction of each, commencing from the
Olympiad of Coroebus:—1. The foot-race
(Spdp.os), which was the only contest during
the first 13 Olympiads. 2. The Si'auAos, or
foot-race, in which the stadium was traversed
twice, first introduced in 01. 14. 3. The
SoAixos, a still longer foot-race than the
Si'auAos, introduced in 01. 15. For a more
particular account of the SiavAo! and WAi^os,
see Stadium. 4. Wrestling (toAtj), and, 5.
The Pcntathlum (7reVra(9Aov), which consisted
of five exercises [Pentathxtjm], both intro-
duced in 01. 18. 6. Boxing (Tvvyp.-q) intro-
duced in 01. 23. [Pugilatvs.] 7. The chariot-
race, with four full-grown horses (iirmav TeAei'un
6pdp.o5, apfia), introduced in 01. 25. 8. The
Pancratium (jrayKpanov) [Pancratium], an4%