guft; happy were their Relations, and thrice happy their Parents. It is a remarkable Story, which Plutarch (a) relates of a Spartan, who meeting Diagoras, that had himself been crown'd in the Olympian Games, and feen his Sons and Grand-children Victors, embrac'd him and said, Die, Diagoras, for thou canst not be a God. By the Laws of Solon a hundred Drachms were allow'd from the publick Treafury to every Athenian, who obtain❜d a Prize in the Ifthmian Games; and Five hundred Drachms to fuch as were Victors in the Olympian (b). Afterwards the latter of thefe had their Maintenance in the Prytaneum, or publick Hall of Athens. At the fame Place it was forbidden by the Laws, to give Slaves or Harlots their Names from any of thefe Games, which was accounted a difhonour to the Solemnities, as hath been elsewhere observ'd (c). Hence there is a Difpute in Athenaus (d), how it came to pass, that Nemea the Minstrel was fo call'd from the Nemean Games.

There were certain Perfons appointed to take care that all things were perform'd according to Cuftom, to decide Controverfies that happen'd amongst the Antagonists, and adjudge the Prizes to thofe that merited them: There were call' αισυμνῆται, βραβεται, ἀγωνάρχαι, αγωνοδίκαι, ἀγωνοθέται, ἀθλοθέται, tho bet vixt there two Phavori nus makes a Diftinction; for abode, he tells us, was peculiar to Gymnical Exercifes, whereas the former was fometimes apply'd to Musical Contentions. They wee likewife call'd pabor, and paldovou from pabos, i. e. a Rod, or Scepter, which thefe Judges, and in general, all Kings and great Magiftrates carry'd in their Hands.

After the Judges had pafs'd Sentence, a publick Herald proclaim'd the Name of the Victor, whence xngúorer in Greek, and pradicare in Latin, fignify to commend or proclaim any Man's Praifes. The Token of Victory was, in most Places, a Palm-branch, which was presented to the Conquerors, and carry'd by them in their Hands; which Cuftom was first introduc'd by Thefeus, at the Inftitution of the Delian Games (e), tho others will have it to be much ancienter: Hence palmam dare, to yield the Victory; and plurium palmarum homo, in Tully, a Man that has won a great many Prizes.

Before I proceed to give a particular Defcription of the Grecian Games, it will be neceffary to prefent you with a brief Account of the principal Exercifes us'd in them, which were as follow;

Tevratnov, or Quinquertium, which confifted of the five Exercises contain'd in this Verfe:

Αλμα, ποδοκεί, δίσκον, ἄκον]α, πάλων.

i. e. Leaping, Running, Throwing, Darting, and Wrestling. Instead of Darting, fome mention Boxing, and others may fpeak of other Exercifes different from thofe which have been mention'd. For wivτdBoy feems to have been a common Name for any Five forts of Exercife perform'd at the fame time. In all of them there were fome Cuftoms that deferve our Observation.

Aus, or the Exercise of Running, was in great Esteem amongst

(a) Pelopida, (d) Lib. XIII.

(b) Plutarch. Solone. (e) Plutarch, Thefeo.

(c) Lib. I. cap. X. Lib. IV, cap. XII.

the

the antient Grecians, infomuch, that fuch as prepar'd themfelves for it, thought it worth their while to ufe Means to burn, or parch their Spleen, because it was believ'd to be an hindrance to them, and retard them in their courfe. Homer tells us, that Swiftnefs is one of the moft excellent Endowments a Man can be bless'd withal (a).

No greater Honour has e'er been attain❜d,

Than what ftrong Hands, or nimble Feet have gain'd.

Indeed, all thofe Exercises, that conduc'd to fit Men for War, were more especially valued: Now Swiftnefs was look'd upon as an excellent Qualification in a Warriour, both because it ferves for a fudden Affault and Onfet, and likewife for a nimble Retreat; and therefore it is not to be wonder'd that the conftant Character, which Homer gives of Achilles, is, that he was das wus, or swift of Foot: And in the holy Scripture, David, in his poetical Lamentation over those two great Captains, Saul and Jonathan, takes particular Notice of this warlike Quality of theirs: They were (fays he) fwifter than Eagles, stronger than Lyons. To return: The Course was call'd sudov, being of the fame extent with the Measure of that Name, which contains CXXV Paces, whence the Runners were term'd sahode. Sometimes the length of it was enlarg'd, and then it was nam'd dones, and the Contenders deedego, whence comes the Proverb M Cre v sadiq dóm20v, i. e. Search not for a greater thing in a lefs. Suidas affigns Twentyfour Stadia to the dogs, and others only Twelve. But the Meafure of it seems not to have been fix'd or determinate, but variable at Pleafure. Sometimes they ran back again to the Place whence they had first fet out, and then the Courfe was call'd diaunos, and the Runners διαυλοδρόμοι, for αυλός was the old Term for Stadium. Sometimes they ran in Armour, and were term'd owodeμoi.

Axud, or the Exercife of Leaping, they fometimes perform'd with Weights upon their Heads, or Shoulders, fometimes carrying them in their Hands ; these were call'd dampes, which, tho now and then of different Figures, yet as Paufanias reports, were ufually of an Oval Form, and made with Holes, or elfe cover'd with Thongs, thro' which the Contenders put their Fingers. AλTipes, were also fometimes us'd in throwing. The Place from which they leap'd was call'd famp (b); that to which they leap'd, agua, because it was mark'd by digging up the Earth; whence day up to exaulia, is apply'd to Perfons that over-leap, or exceed their Bounds. The Mark on the Exercife of throwing Quoits was alfo, fometimes, for the fame Reafon term'd argua.

Pils, or the Exercife of Throwing, or Darting, was perform'd feveral Ways; fometimes with a Javelin, Rod, or other Inftrument of a large fize, which they threw out of their naked Hands, or by the help of a Thong ty'd about the middle of it; the doing of it was term'd

(a) Odys. 0'. v. 147.

(b) Pollux.

ακόμ

443 axovnoua fometimes with an Arrow, or little Javelin, which was either fhot out of a Bow, or caft out of a Sling; and the Art of doing this was call'd τοξική.

Aionos, was a Quoit of Stone, Brafs, or Iron, which they threw by the help of a Thong put thro' a Hole in the middle of it (a), but in a manner quite different from that of throwing Darts; for there the Hands were lifted up, and extended, whereas the Difcus was hurl'd in the manner of a Bowl. It was of different Figures, and Sizes, being fometimes four-fquare, but ufually broad and like a Lentil, whence that Herb is, by Diofcorides, call'd Sioxos. The fame Exercife was fometimes perform'd with an Inftrument call'd Eóλos, which some will have to be distinguish'd from dioxos, because that was of Iron, this of Stone: But others with more Reafon, report, that the difference confifted in this, viz. That pλos was of a Spherical Figure, whereas δίσκος was broad.

Пux, or the Exercife of Boxing, was fometimes perform'd by Combatants having in their Hands Balls of Stone, or Lead, call'd opalea, and then it was term'd aquaxia. At first their Hands and Arins were naked and unguarded, but afterwards furrounded with Thongs of Leather call'd Ceftus, which at the first were fhort, reaching no higher than the Wrifts, but were afterwards enlarg'd, and carry'd up to the Elbow, and fometimes as high as the Shoulder; and in time they came to be us'd not only as defenfive Arms, but to annoy the Enemy, being fill'd with Plummets of Lead and Iron,to add Force to the Blows. The Ceftus was very antient, being invented by Amycus King of the Bebrycians, who was cotemporary with the Argonauts, as we are inform'd by Clemens of Alexandria (b). Thofe that prepar'd themselves for this Exercife, us'd all Means they could contrive to render themfelves fat and flefhy, that fo they might be better able to endure Blows, whence corpulent Men, or Women, were ufually call'd pugiles, according to Terence (c),

Siqua eft habitior paullo, pugilem effe aiunt.

Пaλn or the Exercife of Wrestling, was fometimes call'd Jan, because the Combatants endeavour'd to throw each other down, to do which they call'd pau. At first they contended only with Strength of Body, but Thefeus invented the Art of Wreftling, whereby Men were enabled to throw down thofe, who were far fuperior to them in Strength (d). In later Ages, they never encountered till all their Joynts and Members had been foundly rubb'd, fomented and fuppled with Oyl, whereby all Strains were prevented. The Victory was adjudg'd to him that gave his Antagonist three Falls, whence redu and Σποτειάξαι, fignify to conquer τριαχθῆναι, οι απολεια χθήναι, το be conquered; and by drgianlos dra in Afchylus is meant an infuperable Evil; others make the proper Signification of thefe Words to belong only to Victors, in all the Exercifes of the TvTalhos (e); however, the fore-mention'd Cuftom is fufficiently attefted by the Epi

(a) Euftathius Ody. 9. (b) Strom. I. pag. 307. (6) Eunuch. A&t. II. Sc. III. (d) Panfamias Atticis. (e) Pollux, Onomaft. I. lib. 111. cap. XXX.

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