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Victor's Crown : A History of Ancient Sport from Homer to Byzantium by David Potter (2011, Trade Paperback)
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The Victor's Crown: A History of Ancient Sport from Homer to Byzantium
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About this product
Product Identifiers
PublisherOxford University Press, Incorporated
ISBN-100199842752
ISBN-139780199842759
eBay Product ID (ePID)102821537
Product Key Features
Book TitleVictor's Crown : a History of Ancient Sport from Homer to Byzantium
Number of Pages424 Pages
LanguageEnglish
Publication Year2011
TopicEurope / Greece (See Also Ancient / Greece), Ancient / Greece, History, Byzantine Empire
IllustratorYes
GenreSports & Recreation, History
AuthorDavid Potter
FormatTrade Paperback
Dimensions
Item Height1.3 in
Item Weight10.6 Oz
Item Length9.1 in
Item Width6.1 in
Additional Product Features
Intended AudienceTrade
LCCN2011-008813
Dewey Edition22
Reviews"Well written and informative, this book makes complex ideas understandable. Highly recommended."--S.A. Riess, CHOICE "Written in lively style, packed with detail bringing the era to pungent life." --The Independent"Vivid and authoritative....Potter skillfully reveals how the gymnasium lay at the heart of Greek life and culture, but his passion is clearly for the Olympics.... When Potter moves on to Roman sport, things get livelier still....He meticulously traces the origins, careers, and lifestyles of athletes, gladiators and charioteers alike, and demolished some cherished myths along the way. Fascinating and impressive." --James McConnachie, Sunday Times, "Well written and informative, this book makes complex ideas understandable. Highly recommended."--S.A. Riess, CHOICE "Written in lively style, packed with detail bringing the era to pungent life." --The Independent "Vivid and authoritative....Potter skillfully reveals how the gymnasium lay at the heart of Greek life and culture, but his passion is clearly for the Olympics.... When Potter moves on to Roman sport, things get livelier still....He meticulously traces the origins, careers, and lifestyles of athletes, gladiators and charioteers alike, and demolished some cherished myths along the way. Fascinating and impressive." --James McConnachie, Sunday Times, "Written in lively style, packed with detail bringing the era to pungent life." --The Independent "Vivid and authoritative....Potter skillfully reveals how the gymnasium lay at the heart of Greek life and culture, but his passion is clearly for the Olympics.... When Potter moves on to Roman sport, things get livelier still....He meticulously traces the origins, careers, and lifestyles of athletes, gladiators and charioteers alike, and demolished some cherished myths along the way. Fascinating and impressive." --James McConnachie, Sunday Times, "Vivid and authoritative. Potter skillfully reveals how the gymnasium lay at the heart of Greek life and culture, but his passion is clearly for the Olympics. When Potter moves on to Roman sport, things get livelier still. He meticulously traces the origins, careers and lifestyles of athletes,gladiators and charioteers alike, and demolished some cherished myths along the way. Most gladiatorial combats apparently ended in surrender, not death, although a crowd might well call out 'ingula!' (kill!), running their thousands of thumbs under their throats in the original 'thumbs up' gesture.Fascinating and impressive." --James McConnachie, Sunday Times, "Well written and informative, this book makes complex ideas understandable. Highly recommended."--S.A. Riess,CHOICE "Written in lively style, packed with detail bringing the era to pungent life." --The Independent "Vivid and authoritative....Potter skillfully reveals how the gymnasium lay at the heart of Greek life and culture, but his passion is clearly for the Olympics.... When Potter moves on to Roman sport, things get livelier still....He meticulously traces the origins, careers, and lifestyles of athletes, gladiators and charioteers alike, and demolished some cherished myths along the way. Fascinating and impressive." --James McConnachie, Sunday Times
TitleLeadingThe
Dewey Decimal796.09
Table Of ContentMapsPrefaceThen and NowPart 1: Ashes, Linen and the Origins of Sport1. Introduction2. Homer and the Bronze Age3. Homer and SportPart 2: Olympia4. From Myth to History5. Olympia in 480 BC6. The Olympic Games of 476 BC7. The Festival Approaches8. WinningThe Equestrian EventsThe Pentathlon and the Foot RacesNudityPain and Suffering9. Remembering VictoryThe Athlete as Hero10. The Emergence of the Panhellenic Cycle 98Part 3: The World of the Gynmasium11. Sport and Civic Virtue12. Beroia13. Getting in Shape and Turning ProPart 4: Roman Games14. Greece Meets Rome15. Kings and Games16. Rome and Italy17. Actors and Gladiators18. Caesar, Antony, Augustus and the GamesPart 5: Imperial Games19. Watching20. The Fan's Experience21. Expectations22. Crowd Noise23. Dreaming of Sport24. Images of Sport25. Women's Sports26. ParticipatingLife as a GladiatorTraining and RankingDyingChoosing to be a Gladiator27. Charioteers28. AthletesAthletic GuildsCheating29. Local GamesAdministrationAthleticsEpilogue: The Long End of an EraBibliography
SynopsisThe Victor's Crown brings to vivid life the signal role of sport in the classical world. Ranging over a dozen centuries--from Archaic Greece through to the late Roman and early Byzantine empires--David Potter's lively narrative shows how sport, to the ancients, was not just a dim reflection of religion and politics but a potent social force in its own right. The passion for sport among the participants and fans of antiquity has been matched in history only by our own time. Potter first charts the origins of competitive athletics in Greece during the eighth century BC and the emergence of the Olympics as a preeminent cultural event. He focuses especially on the experiences of spectators and athletes, especially in violent sports such as boxing and wrestling, and describes the physiology of conditioning, training techniques, and sport's role in education. Throughout, we meet the great athletes of the past and learn what made them great. The rise of the Roman Empire transformed the sporting world by popularizing new entertainments, particularly gladiatorial combat, a specialized form of chariot racing, and beast hunts. Here, too, Potter examines sport from the perspectives of both athlete and spectator, as he vividly describes competitions held in such famous arenas as the Roman Coliseum and the Circus Maximus. The Roman government promoted and organized sport as a central feature of the Empire, making it a sort of common cultural currency to the diverse inhabitants of its vast territory. While linking ancient sport to events such as religious ceremonies and aristocratic displays, Potter emphasizes above all that it was the thrill of competition--to those who competed and those who watched--that ensured sport's central place in the Greco-Roman world. "Vivid and authoritative. Potter skillfully reveals how the gymnasium lay at the heart of Greek life and culture, but his passion is clearly for the Olympics. When Potter moves on to Roman sport, things get livelier still. He meticulously traces the origins, careers and lifestyles of athletes, gladiators and charioteers alike, and demolished some cherished myths along the way. Most gladiatorial combats apparently ended in surrender, not death, although a crowd might well call out " ingula! " (kill!), running their thousands of thumbs under their throats in the original 'thumbs up' gesture. Fascinating and impressive." --James McConnachie, Sunday Times, In this volume, David Potter provides a history of ancient sport from Archaic-period Greece to the early Byzantine Empire, and further explores the role sport has played throughout history., The Victor's Crown brings to vivid life the signal role of sport in the classical world. Ranging over a dozen centuries--from Archaic Greece through to the late Roman and early Byzantine empires--David Potter's lively narrative shows how sport, to the ancients, was not just a dim reflection of religion and politics but a potent social force in its own right. The passion for sport among the participants and fans of antiquity has been matched in history only by our own time. Potter first charts the origins of competitive athletics in Greece during the eighth century BC and the emergence of the Olympics as a preeminent cultural event. He focuses especially on the experiences of spectators and athletes, especially in violent sports such as boxing and wrestling, and describes the physiology of conditioning, training techniques, and sport's role in education. Throughout, we meet the great athletes of the past and learn what made them great. The rise of the Roman Empire transformed the sporting world by popularizing new entertainments, particularly gladiatorial combat, a specialized form of chariot racing, and beast hunts. Here, too, Potter examines sport from the perspectives of both athlete and spectator, as he vividly describes competitions held in such famous arenas as the Roman Coliseum and the Circus Maximus. The Roman government promoted and organized sport as a central feature of the Empire, making it a sort of common cultural currency to the diverse inhabitants of its vast territory. While linking ancient sport to events such as religious ceremonies and aristocratic displays, Potter emphasizes above all that it was the thrill of competition--to those who competed and those who watched--that ensured sport's central place in the Greco-Roman world. "Vivid and authoritative. Potter skillfully reveals how the gymnasium lay at the heart of Greek life and culture, but his passion is clearly for the Olympics. When Potter moves on to Roman sport, things get livelier still. He meticulously traces the origins, careers and lifestyles of athletes, gladiators and charioteers alike, and demolished some cherished myths along the way. Most gladiatorial combats apparently ended in surrender, not death, although a crowd might well call out " ingula " (kill ), running their thousands of thumbs under their throats in the original 'thumbs up' gesture. Fascinating and impressive." --James McConnachie, Sunday Times, The Victor's Crown brings to vivid life the signal role of sport in the classical world. Ranging over a dozen centuries - from Archaic Greece through to the late Roman and early Byzantine empires - David Potter's lively narrative shows how sport, to the ancients, was not just a dim reflection of religion and politics but a potent social force in its own right. The passion for sport among the participants and fans of antiquity has been matched in history only by our own time.Potter first charts the origins of competitive athletics in Greece during the eighth century BC and the emergence of the Olympics as a preeminent cultural event. He focuses especially on the experiences of spectators and athletes, especially in violent sports such as boxing and wrestling, and describes the physiology of conditioning, training techniques, and sport's role in education. Throughout, we meet the great athletes of the past and learn what made them great. The rise of the Roman Empire transformed the sporting world by popularizing new entertainments, particularly gladiatorial combat, a specialized form of chariot racing, and beast hunts. Here, too, Potter examines sport from the perspectives of both athlete and spectator, as he vividly describes competitions held in such famous arenas as the Roman Coliseum and the Circus Maximus. The Roman government promoted and organized sport as a central feature of the Empire, making it a sort of common cultural currency to the diverse inhabitants of its vast territory. While linking ancient sport to events such as religious ceremonies and aristocratic displays, Potter emphasizes above all that it was the thrill of competition - to those who competed and those who watched - that ensured sport's central place in the Greco-Roman world.
LC Classification NumberGV573.P67 2011
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