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Cynisca
Cynisca or Kyniska ( el, Κυνίσκα; born c. 442 BC) was a wealthy Spartan princess. She is famous for being the first woman to win at the Olympic Games, competing in the sport of chariot racing. Cynisca first entered the Olympics in 396 BC, where she won first prize competing with a team of horses she had trained herself. In 392 BC, Cynisca entered her horses in the Olympics for a second time and was awarded another victory in the same event. Etymology Cynisca's name means "female puppy" in Ancient Greek, and she was named after her grandfather Zeuxidamus, who was called ''Cyniscos''. It is possible that this name is derived from the hunting traditions of the Spartan elite, or her family's practice of raising hunting dogs. Early life Cynisca was born around 442 BC in the ancient Greek city-state of Sparta and was the daughter of the Eurypontid king Archidamus II. Her brother was Agesilaus II, who later succeeded his father and became a king of Sparta. Because of her fam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cynisca By Sophie De Renneville
Cynisca or Kyniska ( el, Κυνίσκα; born c. 442 BC) was a wealthy Spartan princess. She is famous for being the first woman to win at the Olympic Games, competing in the sport of chariot racing. Cynisca first entered the Olympics in 396 BC, where she won first prize competing with a team of horses she had trained herself. In 392 BC, Cynisca entered her horses in the Olympics for a second time and was awarded another victory in the same event. Etymology Cynisca's name means "female puppy" in Ancient Greek, and she was named after her grandfather Zeuxidamus, who was called ''Cyniscos''. It is possible that this name is derived from the hunting traditions of the Spartan elite, or her family's practice of raising hunting dogs. Early life Cynisca was born around 442 BC in the ancient Greek city-state of Sparta and was the daughter of the Eurypontid king Archidamus II. Her brother was Agesilaus II, who later succeeded his father and became a king of Sparta. Because of her fam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Archidamus II
Archidamus II ( grc-gre, Ἀρχίδαμος ; died 427/6 BC) was a king of Sparta who reigned from approximately 469/8 BC to 427/6 BC. His father was Zeuxidamus (called Cyniscos by many Spartans). Zeuxidamus married and had a son, Archidamus. However, Zeuxidamus died before his father, Leotychidas. After the death of his son and heir, Leotychidas married Eurydame, the sister of Menius and daughter of Diactorides. While they had no male offspring, they did have a daughter, Lampito, whom Leotychidas gave in marriage to his grandson Archidamus. They had a son Agis II. Archidamus' later second marriage was to Eupoleia. The Ephors objected to this union, arguing that due to Eupolia's short stature, “She will bear us kinglets instead of kings”. He married her nonetheless and was for that fined by the Ephors. To them were born a son, Agesilaus II, and a daughter, Cynisca. Rule Archidamus ascended the Spartan throne after his grandfather, Leotychidas, was banished ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apellas
Apellas ( grc, Ἀπελλᾶς) was a sculptor of ancient Greece who made, in bronze, statues of worshipping females (''ad orantes feminas''. He made the statue of Cynisca, who conquered in the chariot race at Olympia. Cynisca was sister to Agesilaus II, king of Sparta, who died at the age of 84, in 362 BCE. Therefore, the victory of Cynisca, and the time when Apellas flourished, may be placed about 400. His name indicates his Doric origin. The writer Diogenes Laërtius mentions a different man with this name, a sceptic philosopher with the name Apellas, about whom nothing else is known.Diogenes Laërtius, ''Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers Diogenes Laërtius ( ; grc-gre, Διογένης Λαέρτιος, ; ) was a biographer of the Greek philosophers. Nothing is definitively known about his life, but his surviving ''Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers'' is a principal sour ...'' 9.106 Notes Ancient Greek sculptors 4th-century BC Greek people 362 d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ancient Olympic Games
The ancient Olympic Games (Ὀλυμπιακοὶ ἀγῶνες; la, Olympia, neuter plural: "the Olympics") were a series of athletic competitions among representatives of city-states and were one of the Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece. They were held in honor of Zeus, and the Greeks gave them a mythological origin. The originating Olympic Games are traditionally dated to 776 BC. The games were held every four years, or Olympiad, which became a unit of time in historical chronologies. They continued to be celebrated when Greece came under Roman rule, 2nd century BC. Their last recorded celebration was in AD 393, under the emperor Theodosius I, but archeological evidence indicates that some games were still held after this date.Hamlet, Ingomar. "Theodosius I. And The Olympic Games". Nikephoros 17 (2004): pp. 53-75. The games likely came to an end under Theodosius II, possibly in connection with a fire that burned down the temple of the Olympian Zeus during his rei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sparta
Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referred to its main settlement on the banks of the Eurotas River in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. Around 650 BC, it rose to become the dominant military land-power in ancient Greece. Given its military pre-eminence, Sparta was recognized as the leading force of the unified Greek military during the Greco-Persian Wars, in rivalry with the rising naval power of Athens. Sparta was the principal enemy of Athens during the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC), from which it emerged victorious after the Battle of Aegospotami. The decisive Battle of Leuctra in 371 BC ended the Spartan hegemony, although the city-state maintained its political independence until its forced integration into the Achaean League in 192 BC. The city nevertheles ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chariot Racing
Chariot racing ( grc-gre, ἁρματοδρομία, harmatodromia, la, ludi circenses) was one of the most popular ancient Greek, Roman, and Byzantine sports. In Greece, chariot racing played an essential role in aristocratic funeral games from a very early time. With the institution of formal races and permanent racetracks, chariot racing was adopted by many Greek states and their religious festivals. Horses and chariots were very costly. Their ownership was a preserve of the wealthiest aristocrats, whose reputations and status benefitted from offering such extravagant, exciting displays. Their successes could be further broadcast and celebrated through commissioned odes and other poetry. In standard racing practise, each chariot held a single driver and was pulled by four horses, or sometimes two. Drivers and horses risked serious injury or death through collisions and crashes; this added to the excitement and interest for spectators. Most charioteers were slaves or contra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Agesilaus II
Agesilaus II (; grc-gre, Ἀγησίλαος ; c. 442 – 358 BC) was king of Sparta from c. 399 to 358 BC. Generally considered the most important king in the history of Sparta, Agesilaus was the main actor during the period of Spartan hegemony that followed the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC). Although brave in combat, Agesilaus lacked the diplomatic skills to preserve Sparta's position, especially against the rising power of Thebes, which reduced Sparta to a secondary power after its victory at Leuctra in 371 BC. Despite the traditional secrecy fostered by the Spartiates, the reign of Agesilaus is particularly well-known thanks to the works of his friend Xenophon, who wrote a large history of Greece (the ''Hellenica'') covering the years 411 to 362 BC, therefore extensively dealing with Agesilaus' rule. Xenophon furthermore composed a panegyric biography of his friend, perhaps to clean his memory from the criticisms voiced against him. Another historical tradition—much ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
