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Author Topic: Boxing in Antiquity  (Read 2334 times)

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Offline Jochen

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Boxing in Antiquity
« on: October 05, 2019, 06:04:02 am »
Dear friends of ancient coins!

The following coin has caused me to deal a little with boxing in ancient times.

The Coin:
Ionia, Smyrna, 75-50 B.C.
AE 15, 3.24g, 14.99mm, 0°
Obv.: Laureate head of Apollo r.
rev: left IATPOΔΩPOΣ, right ΣMYPNAIΩN, both from top to bottom
        Hand in Caestus, r. palm branch
Ref:: Milne 405; SNG Copenhagen 1216; BMC 52
almost SS, black-green patina

Note:
(1) The name of the issuing magistrate is somewhat uncertain. An alternative would be Metrodoros. Most likely, however, is Iatrodoros.
(2) Caestus (spoken as plural with long u) were the fighting belts of the fist fighters. Probably they were identical with the Greek μυρμεκιδες (plural to μυρμεξ). The palm branch on the rev. is an indication of a competition.

History of Caestus:
Caestus were in the first time leather straps, which were wound several times around the knuckles, and bandages around the wrist and the forearm of the fist fighter. In Roman times it was a semicircular, lined leather glove that left the finger ends and thumb free. In the imperial period the boxing glove was weighted down with metal (Pauly). The purpose of the Caestus was not so much to protect the fighter's hand as to make his punches more effective. The dried, untanned leather straps cut the skin like knives.

The ancient fistfight:
Pygme (lat. pugilatus, therefore pugilist as today unusual term for boxer) was the Greek name for the boxing match. It comes from πυγμη = fist, and was also the name for a length of 18 finger width, measured from the elbow to the knuckles of the clenched fist, something like a cubit. From here also the pygmies got their name, which should have been just one cubit tall. Descriptions of the fistfight can be found in the Argonautika of Apollonios Rhodos (II, 1-98), in Vergils Aeneis (V, 425-467) and by Theokrit, who was himself an eyewitness. These were ancient Greek or Hellenistic fights.

In these fights more was allowed than today. Above all, sensitive body parts were beaten, e.g. teeth, ears and nose. The fighters were allowed to jump up and strike from above. The footwork was also important. For example, there were kicks against the shinbone. There was no division into weight classes and often the fight led to serious injuries. There were no rounds with breaks in between, but the fight went on uninterrupted until the victory of one boxer. This could take several hours, especially if the fighters were equally strong. That's why punches against the neck were very popular.

The fight was over when the underdog raised his hand and extended his index finger. Then the victor had to stop, otherwise an arbitrator beat him with a stick. If a fight ended deadly, the perpetrator was punished.

Sokrates criticized the disproportionately strong shoulders on the thin legs of the boxers, which contradicted the Greek beauty ideal of the Harmonia. (Xen. symp. 2, 14). We also have to think of the quote of Juvenal: "A healthy spirit in a healthy body (mens sana in corpore sano)", which actually reads "One should pray that a healthy spirit is in a healthy body".

The boxing match at Homer:
In the 23rd song of the Iliad, i.e. quite at the end of the Trojan War, Homer describes a boxing match between Epeios, who later builds the Trojan Horse, and Euryalos, an Argonaut. This boxing match took place during the funeral games in honour of the fallen Patroklos. The prize for the winner was the mule of Patroklos, the loser received a cup. Here the boxing match plays a symbolic role, it is a ritual act. By subjecting violence to certain rules, it is to be shown that social violence must also be channelled. This should prevent the spread of violence.

How old the fistfight really is cannot be determined exactly. Already 3000 B.C. there were fistfights in Egypt for the entertainment of spectators. But similar fights were also fought in Mesopotamia or Crete. In the following two millennia boxing spread throughout the Aegean region. In 688 B.C. the fistfight was introduced at the 23rd Olympic Games of Antiquity (Pausanias).

The Romans took over boxing from Etruria. It corresponded to Hellenistic boxing. It was mainly demonstrated during gladiator fights. The leather straps were also covered with metal thorns. In the gladiator schools, e.g. in Capua, boxing was trained. By the advancement of the fighting techniques now also defensive and counter tactics were used.

In Greek antiquity this sport was particularly highly regarded because of its dangerous nature. However, the Spartans (as well as the Romans) rejected the participation in boxing fights and justified it only for the training of the warriors (Tacitus, Annalen, 14, 20). In addition it fits well that from the Dioskuroi Polydeikes (lat. Pollux) as boxer was less highly regarded as Kastor the horseman.

The most famous fighter of antiquity with credible 1200-1400 victories was Theogenes of Thasos, son of Timoxenos, who won against Euthymos of Lokroi at the Olympic Games 480 BC. Pausanias tells that Theogenes only participated in the competition to injure Euthymos and was therefore sentenced to a fine. Theogenes did not compete in the fistfight in the following Olympic Games. Other famous pugilists were Pythagoras of Magnesia and Diagoras of Rhodes.

Some notes on modern boxing:
Modern boxing comes from England. Prize fights took place there regularly already in the 17th and 18th centuries, on which the spectators bet. In 1867, about 100 years after the introduction of the first rules, they were changed by a friend of the Marquess of Queensberry in such a way that the first boxing rules for boxing with gloves, the so-called Queensbury rules, emerged, which in principle still apply today. The first official boxing world champion according to the new rules was John L. Sullivan on September 7, 1882. But he also fought partly bare-knuckle, for the last time 1889 against Jack Kilraine (Wikipedia). In 1904, boxing was taken up again as an Olympic sport at the 3rd Modern Olympic Games in St. Louis over 1500 years after the end of the ancient Olympic Games in 393 AD.

History of Art:
I have added 2 pictures:
(1) The Boxer of the Quirinal, also called Terme boxer, from the time of the
      Hellenism, 3.-2. century B.C., found 1885 on the Quirinal in Rome and today
      at the Palazzo Massimo. It shows the boxer after a fight sitting on a rock. The  
      face, framed by perfectly styled hair, is shredded flesh: a disfigured face with  
      swollen shut eye and gaping lacerations. Today it is being discussed whether he    
      is the Bebryk king Amykos, who had been defeated and killed by Polyneikes  
      during the Argonauts' voyage. Except for the rock, this impressive sculpture
      is one of the rare Greek Bronze originals. Altogether only 7(!) are preserved. The
      Roman copies were always made of marble, which the Romans loved above all
      else.
      The pic is from Livioandronico, 2013.

(2) Attic black figure neck amphora, 510-500 BC, from Vulci (Etruria),
      attributed to the so-called Group of Copenhagen (an emergency name, since the
      artist is unknown), today in the Staatliche Antikensammlung, Berlin. Shown is
      side A:
      The right boxer goes to the ground and gives with outstretched hand and finger the
      character for the task. His opponent nevertheless penetrates further into him and
      becomes therefore beaten by the referee with a long whip.

Sources:
(1) Homer, Ilias 23
(2) Homer, Odyssey 8, 120-130
(3) Theokrit
(4) Xenophone, Symposium
(5) Apollonius Rhodes, Argonautika
(6) Vergil, Aeneid
(7) Valerius Flaccus
(8) Pausanias, Voyages in Greece V 8, 7
(9) Juvenal, Satires
(10) Tacitus, Annals

Literature:
(1) Rudolf Münsterberg, The official names on the Greek coins,    
      1911-1927 (also online)
(2) The little Stowasser, Latin-German school dictionary, 1960
(3) Gemoll, Greek-German School and Hand Dictionary, 1959
(3) The Little Pauly, encyclopedia of antiquity, 1979
(4) Duden, Wortfriedhof, 2012

Online Sources:
(1) Wikipedia
(2) Luigi Moretti, List of Winners of the Olympic Games of Antiquity
(3) About the importance of the boxing match in the Iliad of Homer, at the
      "Betker.wordpress.com"

Best regards

Offline mix_val

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Re: Boxing in Antiquity
« Reply #1 on: October 05, 2019, 10:41:16 am »
Thanks for this.   Quite the history!
Bob Crutchley
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Offline gallienus1

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Re: Boxing in Antiquity
« Reply #2 on: October 07, 2019, 08:15:03 am »
Thanks Jochen, for the very interesting post. I have always considered the The Boxer of the Quirinal to be one of the finest works of art to come down to us from antiquity.

Some other boxing related artefacts that might be of interest are-   


Roman terracotta fragment from an oil lamp with boxer motif 40-100 AD. Size 2 1/4 x 1 15/16 x 3/8 in. (5.7 x 5 x 1 cm) from the Williams College Museum of Art.

see-

https://wcma.williams.edu/collection/


The Minoan fresco depicting two young boys wearing boxing gloves and belts and dating to the Bronze Age.

See-

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akrotiri_Boxer_Fresco

An Amphora from 336/5 BC with three boxers.

See-

http://ancientolympics.arts.kuleuven.be/picEN/slides/P0011.jpg.html

Also two interesting depictions of boxers, one Greek painting one Roman mosaic.

See-

https://healthandfitnesshistory.com/explore-history/history-of-boxing/


best regards,

Steve

Offline shanxi

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Re: Boxing in Antiquity
« Reply #3 on: October 07, 2019, 09:23:55 am »

Offline OldMoney

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Re: Boxing in Antiquity
« Reply #4 on: October 12, 2019, 11:38:22 am »
Another coin that is meant to show a boxer, although sometimes
simply called an 'athlete', is this one from Ephesus.
IONIA Ephesus, Salonina (Augusta, 254-268) AE30.
Obv: CAΛΩN XPVCOΓONH CЄBA, Draped bust right, upon crescent.
Rev: TO AΓAΘON ЄΦЄCIΩN, Male figure standing right.
BMC 399; Lindgren III 366.
Image: Naumann 78, lot 510.

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Offline curtislclay

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Re: Boxing in Antiquity
« Reply #5 on: October 29, 2019, 11:19:09 am »
Walter,

Do you know what the rev. legend means, TO AΓAΘON ЄΦЄCIΩN?

Eckhel: "Vaillant rightly explained that the man shown in this type represents the Good Genius of the Ephesians, a figure comparable to the one called Bonus Eventus on Roman coins."

One also thinks of BONO GENIO PII IMPERATORIS on Tetrarchic coins, with type of sacrificing Genius. But how are we to explain the apparent neuter case of TO AΓAΘON, and the omission from the Greek legend of any word for Eventus or Genius? And if the type indeed shows a boxer, why was it connected with that legend?

Edit: From my Greek dictionary: TO AΓAΘON Latin summum bonum, the highest good.
Curtis Clay

Offline JBF

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Re: Boxing in Antiquity
« Reply #6 on: October 29, 2019, 05:47:08 pm »
to agathon ephesiwn  to agathon is nominative singular neuter, a substantive= the good (thing), if it was referring to the individual (man) it would be masculine.  Of course it could imply anything that is neuter, probably the Good (as a substantive noun).  ephesiwn is genitive plural, of the Ephesians.  The 's' is a lunate sigma, which is the same no matter where it is in the inscription (beginning, middle or end.  The genitive plural is the same regardless of whether it is masculine, feminine or neuter.

One characteristic of Greek that contributes to the rise of philosophy in antiquity, is the linguistic ability to talk about 'the Good' (as such), or 'beauty' (as such), in other words, language that makes it easy for the users to talk about abstract ideas.  It is one thing to talk about a beautiful girl, or a picture or temple or coin, another thing to talk about beauty itself, or the good itself or the good of the Ephesians.

There was a boxer whose name escapes me, who returned home and was chased away by his horrified mother who did not recognize him.  There was a pancration fighter who sharpened his nails, and gutted his opponent, he was disqualified.  Of course whether such stories actually happened is one thing, but it seems clear to me that they could have happened and they showed how brutal life could be in antiquity. Not that there wasn't wondrous things also.

 

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