MINISTRY OF CULTURE AND SPORT. are about to begin!

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1 MINISTRY OF CULTURE AND SPORT GENERAL DIRECTORATE OF ANTIQUITIES AND CULTURAL HERITAGE DIRECTORATE OF MUSEUMS DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS AND COMMUNICATION The Olympic Games

2 It is 153 AD and summer is well and truly here. The 233rd Olympic Games are about to begin. Your name is Demetrios and you are an athlete taking part in the foot race. You come from the island of Chios. You have travelled to take part in the most important of all games. The Olympics. Answer the questions discovering interesting information about the games and the place in which they were born! Gymnasium 2. Leonidaion 3. Stadium 4. Temple of Zeus 5. Temple of goddess Hera 6. Prytaneion 7. Bouleuterion 8. Zanes 2

3 -1- You have reached Elis, the city that organizes the games. How did you manage to get here safe and sound from Chios? Thanks to the institution of truce. Messengers have gone to all Greek cities announcing an end to hostilities for the duration of the games. I prayed to Zeus before setting out, so that I would be lucky and not encounter warfare on my way. -2- Patience there is still a month to go before the games begin. How do you intend to spend your time? How else? I will train daily at the gymnasium of Elis, where athletes prepare for the games. I will relax and rest trying not tire myself before the games. 3

4 -3- Patience there is still a month to go before the games begin. How do you intend to spend your time? How else? I will train daily at the gymnasium of Elis, where athletes prepare for the games. I will relax and rest trying not tire myself before the games. -4- You finally managed to get to Olympia. Make a tour of the area starting from the Gymnasium. Actually, what is the gymnasium exactly? A place where athletes exercise in the nude accompanied by music played on the flute in the presence of their trainers. A place where children learn to read and write. 4

5 -5- Next to the Gymnasium you see the Palaestra. What happens here? Here is where athletes participating in heavy events train. I cannot wait to see who will win the pancration! Do you think it will be Marcus Aurelius Demetrios? This is where the wrestling matches are organised. -6- After a short walk you will come upon a huge building! It is the Leonidaion! What exactly is this building? What is it used for? The Leonidaio is the hotel of Olympia! Here is where official visitors stay! It was named after Leonidas the king of Sparta, this was his palace. 5

6 -7- Today is the big day: The games are beginning! The people have started to gather at the Bouleuterion. What is going to happen there? The bouletes (councillors) will gather to decide on the program of the games. The athletes, their relatives, as well as the judges will give an oath in front of the amazing statue of Orkios Zeus that they will observe the rules. At the end the necessary sacrifices to the gods will be made. -8- The sports schedule will start with the games between adolescents. How will the order in which the athletes compete be determined? By lot. Older athletes will compete first. 6

7 -9- It is already the third day of the events. The day will start with the equestrian events. Then comes the pentathlon. What are the pentathlon events? Long jump, stadion (foot race), the javelin, the discus and wrestling. Archery, fencing, swimming, horse riding and cross country Today is the fourth day of the Games! The most sacred of all! The great procession to the Altar of Zeus has begun. What exactly happens there? 100 bulls will be sacrificed this is the well known hecatomb (hecato = one hundred + boes = bulls) of the Olympic Games. 7 The contestants will pray so that Zeus will favour them.

8 -11- As you proceed you reach the Stadium, your eyes are drawn to the bronze sculptures of Zeus, the Zanes. Why are these sculptures here? The Zanes were erected with the money of the fines imposed on those who violated the rules of the games. Placed in front of the entrance of the Stadium they cautioned the athletes and reminded them not to violate the rules! The sculptures have been placed here to honour Zeus, the mythical founder of the Games Finally, it is time for you to compete! You have already taken your place at the Stadium. People are shouting enthusiastically. What events take place here? The foot races, pentathlon and heavy events. The equestrian events. 8

9 -13- An Hellanidikes raises a palm frond and the herald declares the games open. Circle the platform where the judges of the games, the Ellanodikes, sat The altar of Demeter Chamyne is exactly opposite the platform where the Hellanodikes sat. What do you know about that? That is the seat of the only woman allowed in the area where the games were held. It is the location of the winner s pedestal. 9

10 -15- People are encouraging you on. You hear them shout Well done fleet footed Demetrios. You manage to finish first. You are the victor, everybody shouts Well done you are a worthy Olympic victor Where will you be officially awarded your prize? On the fifth and final day of the Games at the temple of Zeus. There the senior hellanodikos will crown you with the sacred olive branch, the greatest gift to an athlete. Your name will be known to posterity! In the stadium, immediately after winning. The Hellanodikes will give you a palm frond and place a red woollen ribbon on your head 10

11 -16- As you receive your prize in the pronaos of the temple of Zeus, your eyes are drawn to the majestic gold ivory sculpture of the god. You look at it in awe. It is truly a magnificent masterpiece. What do you see this amazing god holding in his right hand? An eagle, sacred symbol of the god. Τhe sculpture of the winged Nike (Victory), symbolizing sacred victory in the Olympic games. 11

12 -17- As you leave the sacred temple of Zeus, everywhere you look there are imposing sculptures, altars and other offerings dedicated to the god. You wonder why these are placed here... These sculptures are the so called votive offerings. Victors of the games dedicated these valuable works of art to the god in their desire to thank Zeus for helping them win. They placed them to make the space more beautiful and the area more imposing As you walk up the slope, your eyes fall on a long and narrow Doric temple. It is the temple of goddess Hera known as the Heraion. What will happen now? We will enter the Heraion and place the winners wreaths on the gold ivory table of the sculptor Kolotis. There will be a prayer to the goddess and a sacrifice in her honour. Winners will eat a tasty meal and have fun. 12

13 -19- And finally the time for the meal for all honoured Olympic victors has come! Where do you have to go? Choose the right building! The prytaneion, seat of the prytaneis. The Bouleuterion, seat of the bouleutes (councillors). Congratulations! You successfully participated in the Olympic Games! Now you can return to your home city a victor! There they will welcome you as a hero and honour you with many privileges. 13

14 Explore! Thousands of years have gone by Time has left its mark on the areas of Olympia. However, with a little attention and phantasy you can recognise them. Try to locate and mark on the aerial photograph of Olympia the names of the places that you just learnt about! 14

15 CORRECT ANSWERS 1. Thanks to the institution of truce. 2. By training daily at the gymnasium of Elis, where athletes prepare for the games! 3. By foot! How else? My horse is back home in Chios 4. The place where athletes train. Initially the gymnasium was a rectangular space where athletes from the events of foot races, javelin and discus used to train to the accompaniment of music played on the flute and their trainers. However over time it became an area for education. 5. In the inner yard of the Palaestra the athletes of the heavy events, i.e. wrestling, boxing and long jumping used to train. However, games were not held here, as these took place in the Stadium. 6. The Leonidaio was the hotel of Olympia! Here is where the official visitors were accommodated, while the rest of the people had to camp on the shores of Alpheios! It was named in honour of Leonides from Naxos, who funded its construction. 7. The Bouleuterion was the seat of the Boule of Elis. Here is where the athletes, relatives and judges swore to uphold the rules of the games. 8. By lot. 9. The pentathlon in antiquity comprised the long jump, stadion (foot race), the javelin, the discus and wrestling. 10. The Altar of Zeus was located close to the temple of Hera and the Pelopion. 100 bulls were sacrificed the famous hecatomb (hecato = one hundred + boes = bulls) of the Olympic Games, which were roasted on the highest point of the Altar. At the end the persons present enjoyed the tasty meat of the sacred animals. 11. Zanes were sculptures of Zeus made with money gathered from fines imposed on the athletes that had violated the rules. This was a continuous reminder to the athletes to respect the gods and not to violate the rules. 12. All events were held at the Stadium apart from the equestrian events which were staged at the Hippodrome. The name originates from the ancient measurement unit: the stadium. Initially the stadium of Olympia only had very few seats for the officials. So people would sit on the slopes. Over time the stadium acquired a monumental entryway the Krypte where athletes would enter the sporting field. 14. That is the seat of the only woman allowed in the area where the games where held, the priestess of Demeter Chamyne. 15. The official ceremony will be on the fifth and final day of the Games at the temple of Zeus. There the senior hellanodikos will crown you with the sacred olive branch, the greatest gift to an athlete. Your name will be known to posterity! 16. The sculpture of the winged Nike (Victory), symbolizing sacred victory in the Olympic games! 17. These sculptures were votive offerings, valuable works of art dedicated by victors of the games to Zeus to thank him for helping them win. 18. We will enter the Heraion and place the winners wreaths on the gold ivory table of the sculptor Kolotis. 19. The prytaneio, seat of the prytaneis, which was one of the most important buildings in Olympia. It was the seat of the priests that attended to the functioning of the sanctuary and the offering of sacrifices. The flame of Hestia was kept burning here. The prytaneio also housed the kitchens, as the symposia in honour of the Olympic winners were held there. 15

16 MINISTRY OF CULTURE AND SPORT GENERAL DIRECTORATE OF ANTIQUITIES AND CULTURAL HERITAGE DIRECTORATE OF MUSEUMS DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS AND COMMUNICATION Αthens, 2015 Project coordinator: Maria Lagogianni, Ph.D. (Archaeology) Souzana Choulia Kapeloni, Archaeologist General editors: Tonia Koutsouraki, Archaeologist Alexandra Seleli, Archaeologist / Museologists Texts: Eleni Fragkaki, archaeologist, Cultural Heritage Management Consultant Translation into English: Katerina Apostolaki, Translator - Interpreter Graphic design editor: Spilios Pistas, Graphic artist Graphic design: Irene Charalampidi, Graphic designer Illustrated by: Manolis Tsambourakis, Painter Copyright 2015, Ministry of Culture and Sport ΙSBN: The leaflet The Olympic Games, was created and digitized in 2015, within the framework of Act code no. MIS Updating and digitizing educational material to support the educational process, which is implemented by the Directorate of Museums as part of the Operational Programme Education and Lifelong Learning and jointly funded by the European Union (European Social Fund) and by national resources.