The Panathenaia was the most important festival celebrated in ancient Athens. It was the state festival honoring the city's patron diety, Athena. The Panathenaia, literally meaning "the Rites of all Athenians", was celebrated annually. Every four years, though, it was celebrated on a much greater scale. This was called the "Greater Panathenaia." It took place from the 23rd to the 30th of the Hekatombaion, the fiirst month of the Athenian calendar year, approximately our month of July. The main day of the festival was the 28th, for this was thought to be Athena's birthday. The festival attracted people from far and wide. It provided them with occasions for honoring the Gods with sacrifices and gifts, as well as being a time of relaxation, feasting, games, and prizes. Events A schedule of events can be diagramed as follows: DAY ONE: MUSICAL AND RHAPSODIC CONTESTS Adult Kitharodes: singing and accompanying oneself on the kithara (seven-stringed instrument) Adult Aulodes: singing to the flute Adult and Boy Kitharist: kithara playing Adult and Boy Auletes: solo flute playing DAY TWO: ATHLETIC CONTESTS FOR BOYS AND YOUTHS DAY THREE: ATHLETIC CONTESTS FOR MEN The Panathenaic athletic contests had over 20 events, with three age classes, and team and individual competitions. The following briefly describes each event: Footrace: The footraces were held on the straight track of the Athenian Agora. Each race had ten competitors and was distinguished by distance: stadion: 200 yards diaulos: 2 lengths dolichos: 20 or 24 lengths Pentathalon: The Pentathalon consisted of five events: The Jump: took place in a large sand pit using jumping weights called halteres to improve distan... ... middle of paper ... ...ere were many other prizes given at the Panathenaia. Gold crowns worth several hundred drachmas were often presented for first place. For those competitors who did not achieve first place, there were often monetary awards of a few hundred drachmas. Many special equestrian events had prizes of money, along with bulls, oxen, and free meals. BIBLIOGRAPHY "Athletics: Track, Field, Wrestling, and Boxing." The Internet. http://www.museum.upenn.edu/greek/Religion_athletics.html "Panathenaic Exhibit." The Internet. http://www.devlab.cs.dartmouth.edu/olympics/Panathenaia/index.html "Panathenean Games." The Internet. http://www.orama.com/athens1896/pictures/docs/athgames.html Neils, Jenifer. Goddess and Polis. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1992. Neils, Jenifer (ed.) Worshipping Athena. Wisconsin: The University of Wisconsin Press, 1996.
Festivals were meant to take the minds of the people off their everyday life , off the hard times and their work. Everyday life in Early Modern Europe was filled with rituals, both religious and secular. Songs and stories played an important role in their lives, although they sometimes adjusted the details of the legends and stories to fit the way they thought a certain festival should take place.
Athletics were an expression of the philosophical, religious and civic values that were at the very heart of Greek culture. In the world of the ancient Greeks, well-educated individuals were expected to be balanced mentally, spiritually, and physically (http://www.mediaconcero.com/olympic/olympia/ideal_o.php, September 27, 2004). It was felt that athletics aided in the creation of such an individual. Athletic events during this period were not simply displays of physical prowess, but an integration of the facets of Greek culture.
This means that the people of Sparta believed in not one, but multiple gods. During this time in Greek the primary god was Zeus. Zeus was the god of the sky as well as the ruler of Olympian Gods. The Spartans participated in religious holidays including Carneia, Enyalia, Gymnopaedia and Hyacinths. During the Carneia believed to happen in the month of August, Spartans were not allowed to declare war during this time. Carneia was celebrated in honor of Apollo Carneios. Spartans would chase a designated man and if caught, it meant good luck for the coming harvest. The Enyalia was an annual festival in which its main objective was a spring purification march of the army between the two halves of a scarified dog. Gymnopaedia involved the youth of Sparta, in which they would display their athletic and strong bodies, as well as dance. This was done to highlight and appreciate the beauty of Sparta. Hyacinths was a holiday of celebration and honor. On the first day the people of Sparta would celebrate the death of a hero and the second for the rebirth of a
arrangement, the importance of drama and religion, setting, location. and architectural features of the building. In ancient Greece, festivals were mainly held at the Great Dionysia. This was the oldest theatre in Greece and many plays were performed. here, for example, the first performance of Antigone.
precautions taken before each race. The horses and the drivers were both checked to ensure
The Greeks expressed their respect for their gods through sacred acts, primarily festivals and rituals. The festivals were held to honor certain deities such as the Olympic Games, an event held for athletes meant to honor the god Zeus. The Greeks were ritualistic, participating in actions and sayings as part of religious worship; they had practices for the birth of a baby, the coming of age of young children, the death of a family member, and many more (Buxton 322). The temples found at the center of the polis, the acropolis, were made as earthen dwellings for the gods, a place for storage of sacred objects and offerings, and also served out tasks for the polis such as keeping records.
The Circus Maximus was a large place in Greece. The Circus Maximus was a horse chariot race running around a track. Almost like our NASCAR races today, these races where the biggest attraction in the day of the Greece. The citizens were greatly involved in the racing of the Circus Maximus.("Circus Maximus princeton.edu") Because so many people were involved with these races, they had to find a way to seat all of these people. ("Circus Maximus aviewoncities.com”) This was the first time they invented stadiums. There were also other events held in the Circus Maximus. These events were held for a long time and were eventually ended around 549 BC. The Circus Maximus reflected the values of ancient Rome for entertainment and competition in ancient Roman culture.
The Ancient Greek Olympics were not only sporting events, it was a celebration to honor the great and powerful Zeus. The Ancient Olympics were held every four years at the famous Olympia, a district of Elis, here all free Greek men were allowed to compete. The first record of the Olympic Games was held in 776 B.C. The main sports were the Pentathlon, the Equestrian Events, Pankration, and Boxing.
Track and field-style events are among the oldest of all sporting competitions, as running, jumping and throwing are natural and universal forms of human physical expression. The first recorded examples of organized track and field events at a sports festival are the Ancient Olympic Games. At the first Games in 776 BC in Olympia, Greece, and only one event was contested which was the stadion footrace. We have track athletes to distinguish who is the best athlete for the event in which they are competing in and the athletes can be distinguished from high school, college, and even countries. All tracks athletes come in different shape and sizes, but one thing they
There was a feast that was called Bladder festival and it was mainly to honor the soul of the seals. The Messenger festival, there was a festival for it because everything was so scarce a long time ago. There was also a feast called Feast of the dead but it rarely occurred, and it was a feast for the reborn.
The games were free to the public and paid for by politicians and emperors looking to gain popularity and win votes and to keep the poor and unemployed entertained and occupied so they would not revolt. I see that same parallel in our society today. Large companies and the wealthy provide their customers with tickets to all kinds of events in hopes of winning or keeping their business. This is really prevalent in large companies that provide customers and potential customers with every kind of entertainmen...
In Athens in 534 BCE the tyrant Pisistratus established an annual contest for tragedy as part of the pri...
Theater was an important part of Ancient Greek Civilization. History of Greek theatre began with religious festivals which aim to honor Dionysus, a god. During the festivals some citizens sing songs and perform improvisation plays and other participants of festivals judges this performances to decide which one of them was the best. These plays form the foundation of the Greek Theatre. Because of the competition between performers to create best performances, plays gained an aesthetic perspective and became a form of art. So, theatre as a part of religious rituals took attention of people and gained an importance in Ancient Greek Society.
The Athenians held assemblies also known as Ekklesia. This was where the central events of Athenian de...
The first Olympic games at Olympia were held in 776 BC. According to Hippias of Elis, who compiled a list of Olympic victors c.400 BC, the only event held at the first Olympics was the stadion footrace. Scholars have speculated that the games in 776 BC were not the first games, but rather the first games held after they were organized into festivals held every four years as a result of a peace agreement between the city-states Greece.