Orientation map for the Sanctuary of Artemis Orthia The Sanctuary of Artemis Orthia was one of the most important religious sites in the Greek city of Sparta[1]. The Artemis of Versailles, a Roman copy of a Hellenistic marble sculpture, now at the Louvre Museum. ...
A polis (πολις) — plural: poleis (πολεις) — is a city, or a city-state. ...
Sparta (Doric: ΣπάÏτα, Attic (and Koine): ΣπάÏτη) was a state in ancient Greece, whose territory included, in Classical times, all Laconia and Messenia, and which was the most powerful state of the Peloponnesus. ...
The Sanctuary
The cult of Orthia was common in the four villages originally constituting Sparta: Limnai, Pitana, Kynosoura and Mesoa. Chronologically speaking, it was probably younger than the cult for the city-goddess Athena, Πολιοῦχος / Polioũkhos "protectress of the city" or Χαλκίοικος / Khalkíoikos "of the bronze house". Drawing from a sculpture of Athena at the Louvre. ...
The sanctuary is located in a natural basin between Limnai and the west bank of the river Evrotas. The oldest evidence, pottery fragments from the late Greek Dark Ages, indicating that the cult existed from the 9th century BCE. Originally, the cult celebrated its rituals on a rectangular earthen altar. At the very beginning of the 8th century BCE, the Temenos was paved with river stones and surrounded by a trapezoidal wall. A wood and stone altar was then built as well as a temple. Financing was through the wars waged by Sparta. An altar and a temple of limestone, oriented the same way as previous buildings, was built on a bed of river-sand. The surrounding wall was also enlarged, and at this stage took on a rectangular form. The second temple was entirely rebuilt in the 2nd century BCE, except for the altar, which was replaced in its turn in the 3rd century CE when the Romans built an amphitheatre to welcome tourists to the diamastigosis (see below) The Evrótas (Greek: ΕυÏώτας) is a river in the Peloponnese in southern Greece. ...
Unfired green ware pottery on a traditional drying rack at Conner Prairie living history museum. ...
The Greek Dark Ages (ca. ...
(10th century BC - 9th century BC - 8th century BC - other centuries) (900s BC - 890s BC - 880s BC - 870s BC - 860s BC - 850s BC - 840s BC - 830s BC - 820s BC - 810s BC - 800s BC - other decades) (2nd millennium BC - 1st millennium BC - 1st millennium AD) Events Kingdom of Kush (900 BC...
(9th century BC - 8th century BC - 7th century BC - other centuries) (800s BC - 790s BC - 780s BC - 770s BC - 760s BC - 750s BC - 740s BC - 730s BC - 720s BC - 710s BC - 700s BC - other decades) (2nd millennium BC - 1st millennium BC - 1st millennium AD) Events Golden age in Armenia Assyria...
Temenos (from the Greek verb meaning to cut) is the Greek term in archaeology given to a piece of land which forms the enclosure of a temple, or sanctuary. ...
(3rd century BC - 2nd century BC - 1st century BC - other centuries) (2nd millennium BC - 1st millennium BC - 1st millennium AD) Events BC 168 Battle of Pydna -- Macedonian phalanx defeated by Romans BC 148 Rome conquers Macedonia BC 146 Rome destroys Carthage in the Third Punic War BC 146 Rome conquers...
// Overview Events 212: Constitutio Antoniniana grants citizenship to all free Roman men 212-216: Baths of Caracalla 230-232: Sassanid dynasty of Persia launches a war to reconquer lost lands in the Roman east 235-284: Crisis of the Third Century shakes Roman Empire 250-538: Kofun era, the first...
For other senses of this name, see Roman Empire (disambiguation). ...
The name amphitheatre (alternatively amphitheater) is given to a public building of the Classical period (being particularly associated with ancient Rome) which was used for spectator sports, games and displays. ...
The cult
Primitive cult elements Originally, the cult of Orthia was a pre-anthropomorphic and pre-Olympian religion. The inscriptions simply mentioned "Orthia" [2]. The cult addressed a xoanon (rude wooden effigy) of malevolent reputation. It was reputedly from Tauride, where it was stolen by Orestes and Iphigeneia. Pausanias best describes the subsequent origin of the diamastigosis (ritual flagellation): An ex-voto is a votive offering to a saint or divinity. ...
Façade of the National Archaeological museum of Athens The so-called mask of Agamemnon, one of the best known pieces shown in the museum Jockey of Artemision The National Archaeological museum of Athens houses some of the most important artifacts from a variety of archaeological locations around Greece. ...
Anthropomorphism, also referred to as personification or prosopopeia, is the attribution of human characteristics to inanimate objects, animals, forces of nature, and others. ...
The twelve gods of Olympus. ...
The Remorse of Orestes by William-Adolphe Bouguereau For other uses, see Orestes (disambiguation). ...
The sacrifice of Iphigenia by the Illioupersis Painter Iphigeneia (, also Iphigenia and sometimes Iphianassa) was a daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra in Greek mythology. ...
Pausanias was Greek traveller and geographer of the 2nd century A.D., who lived in the times of Hadrian, Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius. ...
Whipping on a post Flagellation is the act of whipping (Latin flagellum, whip) the human body. ...
"I will give other evidence that the Orthia in Lacedaemon is the wooden image from the foreigners. Firstly, Astrabacus and Alopecus, sons of Irbus, son of Amphisthenes, son of Amphicles, son of Agis, when they found the image straightway became insane. Secondly, the Spartan Limnatians, the Cynosurians, and the people of Mesoa and Pitane, while sacrificing to Artemis, fell to quarrelling, which led also to bloodshed; many were killed at the altar and the rest died of disease. Whereat an oracle was delivered to them, that they should stain the altar with human blood. He used to be sacrificed upon whomsoever the lot fell, but Lycurgus changed the custom to a scourging of the ephebos, and so in this way the altar is stained with human blood. By them stands the priestess, holding the wooden image. Now it is small and light, but if ever the scourgers spare the lash because of a lad's beauty or high rank, then at once the priestess finds the image grow so heavy that she can hardly carry it. She lays the blame on the scourgers, and says that it is their fault that she is being weighed down. So the image ever since the sacrifices in the Tauric land keeps its fondness for human blood. They call it not only Orthia, but also Lygodesma (Λυγοδέσμα - Willow-bound), because it was found in a thicket of willows, and the encircling willow made the image stand upright. [3](III, 16, 9–11)" An oracle is a person or agency considered to be a source of wise counsel or prophetic opinion; an infallible authority, usually spiritual in nature. ...
Lycurgus Lycurgus (approx 700 BCE – 630 BCE) was the legendary lawgiver of Sparta, who established the military-oriented reformation of Spartan society in accordance with the Oracle of Apollo at Delphi. ...
Ephebos (often in the plural epheboi), also anglicized as ephebe, is a Greek word for an adolescent age group or a social status reserved for that age in Antiquity. ...
Species About 350, including: Salix acutifolia- Violet Willow Salix alaxensis- Alaska Willow Salix alba- White Willow Salix alpina- Alpine Willow Salix amygdaloides- Peachleaf Willow Salix arbuscula- Mountain Willow Salix arbusculoides- Littletree Willow Salix arctica- Arctic Willow Salix atrocinerea Salix aurita- Eared Willow Salix babylonica- Peking Willow Salix barrattiana- Barratts...
According to Plutarch, writing in Life of Aristide (17, 8), the ceremony is a re-enactment memorializing an episode in the Greco-Persian Wars[4]. Plutarch Mestrius Plutarchus (c. ...
Combatants Greek city states, particularly Athens and Sparta Persian Empire Commanders Miltiades Themistocles Leonidas I Pausanias Kimon Pericles Mardonius Datis Artaphernes Xerxes I Megabyzus The Greco-Persian Wars or Persian Wars were a series of conflicts between the Greek world and the Persian Empire that started about 500 BC and...
In addition to the flagellation of the diamastigosis, the cult entailed individual dances by young men and dances by choruses of girls. For the young men, the prize is a sickle, which implies an agricultural ritual.
The presence of ex-votos (votive offerings) attests to the popularity of the cult: clay masks representing old women or hoplites as well as lead and terra cotta figures showing men and women playing the flute, lyre, or cymbals, or mounting a horse. An ex-voto is a votive offering to a saint or divinity. ...
A hoplite armed with a spear. ...
General Name, Symbol, Number lead, Pb, 82 Chemical series poor metals Group, Period, Block 14, 6, p Appearance bluish white Atomic mass 207. ...
Terra cotta is a hard semifired waterproof ceramic clay used in pottery and building construction. ...
A lyre is a stringed musical instrument well known for its use in Classical Antiquity. ...
Sabian Paragon cymbals Cymbals (Fr. ...
An ex-voto is a votive offering to a saint or divinity. ...
Façade of the National Archaeological museum of Athens The so-called mask of Agamemnon, one of the best known pieces shown in the museum Jockey of Artemision The National Archaeological museum of Athens houses some of the most important artifacts from a variety of archaeological locations around Greece. ...
Diamastigosis The cult of Orthia gave rise to διαμαστίγωσις / diamastigosis (from διαμαστιγῶ / diamastigô, "to whip harshly"), where Ephebos were flogged, as described by Plutarch, Xenophon, Pausanius and Plato. Cheeses were piled on the altar and guarded by adults with whips. The young men would attempt to get them, braving the whips. At least to the Roman era, the priestess could control the force of the flogging; according to Pausanius she carried the xoanon during the ritual, and if it grew too heavy for her she would blame the floggers as described above. Ephebos (often in the plural epheboi), also anglicized as ephebe, is a Greek word for an adolescent age group or a social status reserved for that age in Antiquity. ...
Plutarch Mestrius Plutarchus (c. ...
Xenophon (In Greek , c. ...
Pausanias is the name of several ancient people: Pausanias was a Spartan general of the 5th century BC. Pausanias of Sparta was King of Sparta from 409 BC-395 BC. Pausanias was the servant/lover who assassinated Philip II of Macedon in 336 BC Pausanias, Greek traveller and geographer of...
Plato ( Greek: Πλάτων, PlátÅn, wide, broad-shouldered) (c. ...
Pausanias is the name of several ancient people: Pausanias was a Spartan general of the 5th century BC. Pausanias of Sparta was King of Sparta from 409 BC-395 BC. Pausanias was the servant/lover who assassinated Philip II of Macedon in 336 BC Pausanias, Greek traveller and geographer of...
During the Roman period, according to Cicero, the ritual became a blood spectacle, sometimes to the death, with spectators from all over the empire (Tusculanae Quaestiones, II, 34). An amphitheatre had to be built in the 3rd century to accommodate the tourists. Libanios indicates that the spectacle was attracting the curious as late as the 4th century. Marcus Tullius Cicero (IPA: ;) (January 3, 106 BC – December 7, 43 BC) was an orator and statesman of Ancient Rome, and is generally considered the greatest Latin orator and prose stylist. ...
Also known as the Tusculan Disputations, written about the greatness of Rome etc. ...
// Overview Events 212: Constitutio Antoniniana grants citizenship to all free Roman men 212-216: Baths of Caracalla 230-232: Sassanid dynasty of Persia launches a war to reconquer lost lands in the Roman east 235-284: Crisis of the Third Century shakes Roman Empire 250-538: Kofun era, the first...
Libanius (Greek Libanios) (ca 314 AD - ca 394) was a Greek-speaking teacher of rhetoric of the later Roman Empire, an educated pagan of the Sophist school in an Empire that was turning aggressively Christian and publicly burned its own heritage and closed the academies He was born into a...
As a means of recording the passage of time, the 4th century was that century which lasted from 301 to 400. ...
Excavation of the site The site was brought to light at the beginning of the 20th century by the British school of archaeology during their digs in Laconia. At the time, the site appeared to consist only of a ruined Roman theatre, largely pillaged after the foundation of modern Sparta in 1834, and about to collapse into the river. The archaeologists, under the leadership of R.M. Dawkins, quickly found evidence of Greek occupation. Dawkins writes, "The Roman theatre was easy to protect...a large quantity of ancient objects which by the light they shed on primitive Sparta, have given this dig capital significance." (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the...
Laconia (Λακωνία; see also List of traditional Greek place names), also known as Lacedaemonia, was in ancient Greece the portion of the Peloponnesus of which the most important city was Sparta. ...
1834 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...
The first campaign lasted five seasons during which Dawkins published A History of the Sanctuary in 1910. It was marked by an intense focus on stratigraphy. The 1924–1928 campaign in Sparta also included a cleanup of the Orthia site in 1928.-1...
In archaeology, especially in the course of excavation, stratification is of major interest and significance. ...
1924 (MCMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ...
1928 (MCMXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...
Façade of the National Archaeological museum of Athens The so-called mask of Agamemnon, one of the best known pieces shown in the museum Jockey of Artemision The National Archaeological museum of Athens houses some of the most important artifacts from a variety of archaeological locations around Greece. ...
See Also The site of the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus in Turkey: Some stacked remnants recreate columns, but nothing remains of the original temple The Temple of Artemis (Greek: Artemision; Latin: Artemisium) was a Greek temple dedicated to Artemis completed around 550 BC at Ephesus (in present-day Turkey) under the...
Carnea was one of the most important religious festivals in ancient Sparta. ...
The Hyacinthia (Ancient Greek Ὑακίνθια / HyakÃnthia) were Spartan religious festivities, organized at Amycla every year in early summer. ...
Corybantian dance, the type of dance most likely danced on Gymnopedia festivals (image from Smiths Dictionary of Antiquities) Gymnopaedia derives from the ancient Greek γυμνοπαιδία, a festivity in Sparta, where naked youths would perform war dances. ...
Notes - ^ This article translated from the French language article at 22 May 2006
- ^ There are several variant spellings, such as "Orthria"; the lyric poet Alcman (Parthénies, I, v. 61), called her "Aotis".
- ^ Pausanias. Description of Greece. Trans. W.H.S. Jones and H.A. Ormerod 1918. available online at [1] accessed 22 May 2006.
- ^ "...to this day, in imitation of this onslaught, the ceremonies of beating the young warriors round the altar at Sparta, and of the procession of the Lydians which follows this, are duly celebrated as rites" Plutarch, Lives (III, 17, 8). trans Translation by. Bernadotte Perrin 1914. online at [2] accessed 22 May 2006.
French (français, langue française) is one of the most important Romance languages, outnumbered in speakers only by Spanish and Portuguese. ...
Alcman (Greek , also Alkman) (7th cent. ...
Bibliography - (French)P. Bonnechère, Orthia et la flagellation des éphèbes spartiates : un souvenir chimérique de sacrifice humain, Kernos, 6, 1993, 11-22 ;
- Paul Cartledge, Sparta and Lakonia. A Regional History 1300 to 362 BC. Routledge, New York, 2002 (2nd edn) ISBN 0-415-26276-3
- R.M. Dawkins (dir.), The Sanctuary of Artemis Orthia at Sparta, Journal of Hellenic Studies, supplement no. 5, London, 1929
- (French)Henri Jeanmaire, Couroi et Courètes : essai sur l'éducation spartiate et sur les rites d'adolescence dans l'Antiquité hellénique, Lille, Bibliothèque universitaire, 1939
- (French)Edmond Lévy, Sparte : histoire politique et sociale jusqu’à la conquête romaine, Seuil, "Points Histoire" collection, Paris, 2003 ISBN 2020324539
- A. Spawforth, "Spartan Cults Under the Roman Empire", Philolakon: Lakonian Studies in Honour of Hector Catling, Jan Motyka Sanders ed., London, 1992
- (Spanish) A. Vegas Sansalvador, " Ϝορθασία, Ὀρθία y Ἄρτεμις Ὀρθία en Laconia", Emerita n° 64 (1996), p. 275–288.
Paul Cartledge is a Classical historian of Cambridge Universitys Clare College. ...
Edmond Lévy ([b. ...
External Links - (French)Salomon Reinach, La flagellation rituelle, Cultes, Mythes et Religions, t. I, Éditions Ernest Leroux, Paris, 1905, pp. 173-183 (online at Psychanalyse-paris.com).
- The Sanctuary of Artemis Orthia (Greek ministry of culture)
- Sparta and Lakonia (British School at Athens)
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