Cynisca
Encyclopedia
Cynisca or Kyneska (born c.440 BC
) was a Greek
princess of Sparta
. She became the first woman in history to win at the ancient Olympic Games.
city of Sparta
and was the daughter of the Eurypontid king of Sparta
, Archidamus II
, and Eupoleia. She was also the sister of the later king of Sparta, Agesilaus II
. She is said to have been a tomboy, an expert equestrian
and very wealthy, the perfect qualifications for a successful trainer. She was exceedingly ambitious to succeed at the Olympic Games and the first woman to breed horses and win an Olympic victory, according to Pausanias
.
Her name means 'female puppy' in Ancient Greek
. She was named after her grandfather Zeuxidamus, who was called Cyniscos. It is possible that this name related to a specific kind of dog in Sparta, the female bloodhounds of which were famous for their ability to find the quarries via their scent.
world were kept in seclusion and forbidden to learn any kind of skills in sports, riding or hunting, Spartan women by contrast were brought up from girlhood to excel at these things so as to produce strong children, by going through early training similar to that of their brothers.
The ancient Olympic Games were almost entirely male-only and women were forbidden even to set foot in the main stadium at Olympia
, where running events and combat sports were held. Women were allowed to enter only the equestrian events, not by running but by owning and training the horses. Cynisca employed men and entered her team at the Olympics, where it won in the four-horse chariot racing
(tethrippon Greek: τέθριππον) twice, in 396 BC and again in 392 BC. The irony is that she probably didn't see her victories.
There have been some speculations over the motives of Agesilaus in directing his sister to join the equestrian competitions. One explanation is that he wanted to rekindle the warlike spirit in the Spartan society, which had given ground for the sake of a win in the Olympic Games. Another possible reason is that Agesilaus wanted to display Cynisca's abilities, or promote women generally.
According to Xenophon
, she was encouraged to breed horses and compete in the Games, by her brother Agesilaus II
, in an attempt to discredit the sport. He viewed success in chariot racing as a victory without merit, which was only a mark of wealth and lavish outlay due to the involvement of the horses' owner, while in the other events the decisive factor was a man's bravery and virtue. By having a woman win, he hoped to show the sport to be unmanly, but Cynisca's victories did not stop wealthy Spartans' engagement in the sport.
However, Cynisca was honored by having a bronze statue of a chariot and horses, a charioteer and a statue of herself in the Temple of Zeus
in Olympia, by the side of the statue of Troilus
, made by Apelles
, and an inscription written declaring that she was the only female to win the wreath in the chariot events at the Olympic Games. The first person in the inscription indicates that Cynisca was willing to push herself forward and Xenophon says that this inscription was Agesilaus' idea. In addition to this, a hero-shrine of Cynisca was erected in Sparta at Plane-tree Grove, where religious ceremonies were held. Only Spartan kings were graced in this way and Cynisca was the first woman to receive this honor. The inscription from Olympia (ca. 390-380 BC) reads:
, Timareta, Theodota and Cassia. However, none of them was more distinguished for their victories than she was. Zoe Karelli, a modern Greek
poet, wrote a poem for Cynisca's love for the horses and her Olympic win which made her name famous in Greek history. This Spartan princess is frequently used until today as a symbolic figure of the social rise of woman.
Bibliography
440 BC
Year 440 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Macerinus and Lanatus...
) was a Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
princess of Sparta
Sparta
Sparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...
. She became the first woman in history to win at the ancient Olympic Games.
Early life
Cynisca was born around 440 BC in the ancient GreekAncient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
city of Sparta
Sparta
Sparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...
and was the daughter of the Eurypontid king of Sparta
Kings of Sparta
Sparta was an important Greek city-state in the Peloponnesus. It was unusual among Greek city-states in that it maintained its kingship past the Archaic age. It was even more unusual in that it had two kings simultaneously, coming from two separate lines...
, Archidamus II
Archidamus II
Archidamus II was a king of Sparta who reigned from approximately 476 BC to 427 BC. He was of the Eurypontid dynasty. His father was Zeuxidamus , who died before his father, Leotychidas, after having his son, Archidamus....
, and Eupoleia. She was also the sister of the later king of Sparta, Agesilaus II
Agesilaus II
Agesilaus II, or Agesilaos II was a king of Sparta, of the Eurypontid dynasty, ruling from approximately 400 BC to 360 BC, during most of which time he was, in Plutarch's words, "as good as thought commander and king of all Greece," and was for the whole of it greatly identified with his...
. She is said to have been a tomboy, an expert equestrian
Equestrianism
Equestrianism more often known as riding, horseback riding or horse riding refers to the skill of riding, driving, or vaulting with horses...
and very wealthy, the perfect qualifications for a successful trainer. She was exceedingly ambitious to succeed at the Olympic Games and the first woman to breed horses and win an Olympic victory, according to Pausanias
Pausanias (geographer)
Pausanias was a Greek traveler and geographer of the 2nd century AD, who lived in the times of Hadrian, Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius. He is famous for his Description of Greece , a lengthy work that describes ancient Greece from firsthand observations, and is a crucial link between classical...
.
Her name means 'female puppy' in Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
. She was named after her grandfather Zeuxidamus, who was called Cyniscos. It is possible that this name related to a specific kind of dog in Sparta, the female bloodhounds of which were famous for their ability to find the quarries via their scent.
Olympic Games
While most women in the ancient GreekAncient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
world were kept in seclusion and forbidden to learn any kind of skills in sports, riding or hunting, Spartan women by contrast were brought up from girlhood to excel at these things so as to produce strong children, by going through early training similar to that of their brothers.
The ancient Olympic Games were almost entirely male-only and women were forbidden even to set foot in the main stadium at Olympia
Olympia, Greece
Olympia , a sanctuary of ancient Greece in Elis, is known for having been the site of the Olympic Games in classical times, comparable in importance to the Pythian Games held in Delphi. Both games were held every Olympiad , the Olympic Games dating back possibly further than 776 BC...
, where running events and combat sports were held. Women were allowed to enter only the equestrian events, not by running but by owning and training the horses. Cynisca employed men and entered her team at the Olympics, where it won in the four-horse chariot racing
Chariot racing
Chariot racing was one of the most popular ancient Greek, Roman and Byzantine sports. Chariot racing was often dangerous to both driver and horse as they frequently suffered serious injury and even death, but generated strong spectator enthusiasm...
(tethrippon Greek: τέθριππον) twice, in 396 BC and again in 392 BC. The irony is that she probably didn't see her victories.
There have been some speculations over the motives of Agesilaus in directing his sister to join the equestrian competitions. One explanation is that he wanted to rekindle the warlike spirit in the Spartan society, which had given ground for the sake of a win in the Olympic Games. Another possible reason is that Agesilaus wanted to display Cynisca's abilities, or promote women generally.
According to Xenophon
Xenophon
Xenophon , son of Gryllus, of the deme Erchia of Athens, also known as Xenophon of Athens, was a Greek historian, soldier, mercenary, philosopher and a contemporary and admirer of Socrates...
, she was encouraged to breed horses and compete in the Games, by her brother Agesilaus II
Agesilaus II
Agesilaus II, or Agesilaos II was a king of Sparta, of the Eurypontid dynasty, ruling from approximately 400 BC to 360 BC, during most of which time he was, in Plutarch's words, "as good as thought commander and king of all Greece," and was for the whole of it greatly identified with his...
, in an attempt to discredit the sport. He viewed success in chariot racing as a victory without merit, which was only a mark of wealth and lavish outlay due to the involvement of the horses' owner, while in the other events the decisive factor was a man's bravery and virtue. By having a woman win, he hoped to show the sport to be unmanly, but Cynisca's victories did not stop wealthy Spartans' engagement in the sport.
However, Cynisca was honored by having a bronze statue of a chariot and horses, a charioteer and a statue of herself in the Temple of Zeus
Temple of Zeus
The Temple of Zeus at Olympia was an ancient Greek temple in Olympia, Greece, dedicated to the chief of the gods, Zeus. It was the very model of the fully developed classical Greek temple of the Doric order...
in Olympia, by the side of the statue of Troilus
Troilus
Troilus is a legendary character associated with the story of the Trojan War...
, made by Apelles
Apelles
Apelles of Kos was a renowned painter of ancient Greece. Pliny the Elder, to whom we owe much of our knowledge of this artist rated him superior to preceding and subsequent artists...
, and an inscription written declaring that she was the only female to win the wreath in the chariot events at the Olympic Games. The first person in the inscription indicates that Cynisca was willing to push herself forward and Xenophon says that this inscription was Agesilaus' idea. In addition to this, a hero-shrine of Cynisca was erected in Sparta at Plane-tree Grove, where religious ceremonies were held. Only Spartan kings were graced in this way and Cynisca was the first woman to receive this honor. The inscription from Olympia (ca. 390-380 BC) reads:
- English
- Kings of Sparta are my father and brothers
- Kyniska, victorious with a chariot of swift-footed horses,
- have erected this statue. I declare myself the only woman
- in all HellasGreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
to have won this crown. - Apelleas son of Kallikles made it.
- Ancient Greek
Culture
Cynisca's win in the Olympics had a great impact on the ancient Greek world as other women, especially Lacedaemonians, later won the chariot racing like Euruleonis, BelisticheBelistiche
Bilistiche or Belistiche was a Hellenistic courtesan of uncertain origin. According to Pausanias, she was a Macedonian; according to Athenaeus, an Argive; according to Plutarch, a foreign slave bought from the marketplace. She won the tethrippon and synoris horse races in the 264 BC Olympic Games...
, Timareta, Theodota and Cassia. However, none of them was more distinguished for their victories than she was. Zoe Karelli, a modern Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
poet, wrote a poem for Cynisca's love for the horses and her Olympic win which made her name famous in Greek history. This Spartan princess is frequently used until today as a symbolic figure of the social rise of woman.
See also
- EuryleonisEuryleonisEuryleonis was a celebrated woman Olympic charioteer.Euryleonis was an athlete from Sparta who won the 2 horse chariot races of the Ancient Olympic Games in 368 BCE....
another celebrated Spartan woman who won the two horse chariot race in 368 BC.
External links
- The No Woman Rule in Ancient Olympics
- Spartan Olympic Victors
- http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history/n-s/spartans2.htmlThe Spartans on Channel 4Channel 4Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
] - PausaniasPausanias (geographer)Pausanias was a Greek traveler and geographer of the 2nd century AD, who lived in the times of Hadrian, Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius. He is famous for his Description of Greece , a lengthy work that describes ancient Greece from firsthand observations, and is a crucial link between classical...
, Description of Greece, online at Perseus
Bibliography
- Paul CartledgePaul CartledgePaul Anthony Cartledge is the first A. G. Leventis Professor of Greek Culture at Cambridge University, having previously held a personal chair in Greek History at Cambridge....
, The Spartans: An Epic History, 2nd edition 2003. - Stephen Hodkinson, Property and Wealth in Classical Sparta, The Classical Press of Wales, 2000. ISBN 0-7156-3040-7