Pausanias' description of Greece, Volume I.Pausanias, active approximately 150-175
History
Pausanias' description of Greece, Volume I.
Pausanias, active approximately 150-175
Greece -- Antiquities; Greece -- Description and travel -- Early works to 1800
And after this they say Clymenus the son of Cardys, (in the 50th year
after Deucalion’s flood), a descendant of Idæan Hercules, came from
Crete and established games at Olympia, and erected an altar to his
ancestor Hercules and to the other Curetes, giving Hercules the title
of Assistant. But Endymion the son of Aethlius deposed Clymenus from
the kingdom, and gave it to his sons as a prize for the best runner
of them at Olympia. And a generation after Endymion, Pelops made the
contest to Olympian Zeus more famous than any of his predecessors.
And when the sons of Pelops were scattered from Elis all over the
Peloponnese, Amythaon the son of Cretheus, uncle of Endymion on the
father’s side, (for they say Aethlius was the son of Æolus surnamed
Zeus), appointed games at Olympia, and after him Pelias and Neleus in
common. So also did Augeas and Hercules, the son of Amphitryon, after
the capture of Elis. And all that he crowned as victors were Iolaus,
who had borrowed the mares of Hercules for the race. It was an old
custom to be a competitor with borrowed horses. Homer at least in the
funeral games in honour of Patroclus has represented Menelaus as yoking
together Agamemnon’s horse Æthe with one of his own.[68] Iolaus was
also Hercules’ charioteer. He was the victor in the chariot race, and
Iasius an Arcadian in the riding race, and Castor was successful in
running, Pollux in boxing. It is also recorded of Hercules that he was
victorious in wrestling and in the pancratium.
And after the reign of Oxylus, who also established games, the
Olympian games were suspended till Iphitus. And when he renewed the
games as I have before stated, there was a general forgetfulness about
the ancient games, but in a short while they got remembered again,
and whenever they remembered any little feature of the games, they
added it to the programme. And this proves my statement. From the
time that the Olympian games were revived continuously, prizes were
first instituted for running, and Corœbus of Elis was the victor. His
statue is at Olympia, and his grave is on the borders of Elis. And
in the 14th Olympiad afterwards the double course was introduced:
when Hypenus a native of Pisa won the wild olive crown, and Acanthus
was second. And in the 18th Olympiad they remembered the pentathlum
and the wrestling, in the former Lampis was victor, in the latter
Eurybatus, both Lacedæmonians. And in the 23rd Olympiad they ordained
prizes for boxing, and Onomastus was victor from Smyrna (which was at
that day reckoned as Ionia). And in the 25th Olympiad they had a race
of full-grown horses, and the Theban Pagondas was proclaimed victor
in this race. And in the eighth Olympiad later they introduced the
pancratium and the riding race. The horse of Crannonian Crauxidas
got in first, and the competitors for the pancratium were beaten by
the Syracusan Lygdamis, who has his sepulchre at the stonequarries
of Syracuse. And I don’t know whether Lygdamis was really as big
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