Red-figure alabastron with a discobolus and a jumper
On the one side of the vase, a naked discobolus is depicted standing with his right leg bent forward. He holds in his hands a discus before the throw. Behind him, a mattock (skalis), used to soften the soil of the stadium, lies on the ground. On the other side of the vase, a long-jumper (haltes) is depicted in the same position, holding in each hand the halteres, stone spherical weights to increase the distance of the jump.
The representation of athletic scenes is common in vase painting of the late archaic period.
The discus throw and the long jump (halma) were included in the Ancient Olympic Pentathlon. The competition was held successively, on a single day together with the other events: the running, the javelin-throw and the wrestling. The discus throw is mentioned by Homer in athletic events in Iliad and Odyssey. The long jump was the only jump in the ancient Olympic Games, accompanied with the sound of the flute.
- Ephorate of Antiquities of the City of Athens
- Archaeological Collections of the Ephorate, inv. n. A 17325
- 520 – 500 BC
- H. 0.143 m. Rim diam. 0.041 m.
- Clay
- Provenance: Excavation of an ancient cemetery, 3rd Amerikis Street, Athens
Bibliography
- Miller, St. G. (2004). Ancient Greek Athletics, pp. 60-70, New Haven – London: Yale University Press. (Pentathlon)
- Moore, M.B. (1997). Attic Red-figured and White Ground Pottery, The Athenian Agora XXX, pp. 40-50, Princeton.
- Patrucco, R. (1972). Lο Sport nelle Grecia Αntica, pp. 61-91 (for the halteres and the αλτηροβολία), pp. 133-169 (for the discus throw), Firenze: Casa Editrice Olschki.
- Valavanis, P, (2004). Sanctuaries and Games in Ancient Greece. Olympia, Delphi, Isthmia, Nemea, Athens, pp. 417-42, Athens: Kapon Editions.
- Vanhove, D. (1992). Le Sport dans la Grèce Antique, pp. , 212-213 no. 71, Bruxelles: Palais des beaux arts.
