Posted on 07/30/2004 6:18:16 PM PDT by MikalM
Imagine Plato, a noted fan of ancient Greek athletics, providing color commentary for the upcoming Olympic Games:
"Why in Zeus' name are they wearing clothes?" he might ask.
The Olympics are returning to their original home in Greece next month but not to their original dress code. "This may be the most obvious and striking difference between today's athletes and the ancient Greeks," UC Berkeley archaeologist Stephen Miller says in "Ancient Greek Athletics," his new book on the ancient games. So embedded was competing in the nude that our word gymnasium comes from the Greek gymnos for "naked," Miller notes in the book, an in-depth account of a culture that loved to watch the well-proportioned bodies of young men, their skin glistening with olive oil, compete not for medals but for a sprig of olive or bunch of wild celery.
On a deeper level, Miller said, nude competition helped foster one of ancient Greece's best-known contributions to posterity -- democracy. Nudity, he said, erases marks of rank and privilege.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
The Greeks gave us Democrats. The Romans gave us Civilization.
No, Andrew Jackson gave us Democrats, and Sid Meier gave us Civilization.
A little pre-pubescent for my taste...
Don't forget volley ball.
The "women's on even parallel bar" gymnastics event would certainly be more interesting.
Actually, sports illustrated did a photo shoot of a US gymnast doing various evens in the nude back in the early-70s. They used a very fuzzy out of focus lens. Can't remember who the gymnast was but she did win a gold, that I remember.
BTW, I think it's the un-even parallel bar.
Please FREEPMAIL me if you want on, off, or alter the "Gods, Graves, Glyphs" PING list --
Archaeology/Anthropology/Ancient Cultures/Artifacts/Antiquities, etc.
The GGG Digest -- Gods, Graves, Glyphs (alpha order)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.