Pausanias: Explorations Throughout the Ancient

Greek WorldPresentation by Greg Pace

CLCV 232: Ancient Greek Sanctuaries

Introduction

Pausanias is a very important figure in our studies of ancient Greek sanctuaries because he provides his own personal accounts of his travels throughout Greece in mid-second century AD.

Background

• Born in 110AD, died 180AD

• He was a Roman writer and geographer who came from Asia Minor who traveled extensively to places like Antioch, Joppa, Jerusalem and the banks of the River Jordan, Egypt, Ammon, Pindar, and Macedonia.

• Most famous for his writing The Description of Greece which is an extensive ten book guidebook in which he describes the cities and sanctuaries, monuments and objects he observed during his travels throughout Greece most nobility focusing on Athens (1), Sparta (3), Delphi (10), Olympus and the Olympian Games (5-6).

Background cont.

• Pedley accuses him of relying on second hand sources and that he misses crucial information like not mentioning the Parthenon frieze at all

• Throughout the textbook Sanctuaries and the Sacred in the Ancient Greek he gives examples whether other archeological evidence supports or disproves his writings.

• What makes him so special vs other geographers is because not only does he provide geographical context, he also gives cultural and religious context as well as myths and political events.

Description of Greece: Book 1

• An interesting aspect of his writing is that he treats the reader similarly to a tour guide in Greece today.

• An example would be in book one in which he covers the region of Attica, he depicts entering the city of Athens through the main gates and gives descriptions of the geography and highlights the points of interest around the area. Throughout the book he focuses on Athens and the Acropolis. Among many other topics around the region he covers some relevant places to those learned throughout the year are his descriptions of Marathon and its epic battle and sacred places like Eleusis.

Book 2: Argolis

• Throughout book II, Pausanians covers the region of Argolis.

Book 3: Laconia

• In book III, he covers the region of Laconia most notably talking about Sparta. Pedley points out an interesting ritual in the book that explains that Spartan boys were whipped in public to see who could endure the pain longest and his reasoning other than social and physical competition was to please Artemis with human blood.

Book 4: Messenia

• In book IV, Pausanias covers the region of Messenia.

Books 5 and 6: Elis

• In books V and VIm he covers the region of Elis and tell stories about the ancient quadrennial Panhellenic games at Olympus, held in honor of Zeus. It is said that these books are some of his best work. An interesting fact is that he believed Herakles founded the games rather than Pelops.

Book 7: Achaea

• In book VII, Pausanias covers the region of Achaea.

Book 8: Arcadia

• In book VIII, Pausanias covers the region of Arcadia.

Book 9: Boeotia

• In book IX, Pausanias covers the region of Arcadia.

Book 10: Phocis

• In book X, Pausanias covers the region of Phocis where Delphi is located. He describes how Delphi is steep and difficult for the walker, tells stories of about Delphi, and goes into detail about the oracle of Apollo. He talks about the Pythian Games and their history as well as the Amphityonic League. When he is describing Delphi he also talks about the offerings that took place there.

Concluding

• We have a lot of thank Pausanias for because without him we would not know nearly as much as we do know about the history of ancient Greece’s geography, culture, religion, and much more at the time.

• His method of writing is not only informative but provides readers insight to how people lived there lives.

• Archeologist continue to refer to his writings to prove if their findings match up with his writing or to disprove his writing. Pausanias is truly an amazing resource to us today and his travels will never be forgotten.

Bibliography

• Atsma, Aaron. "Pausanias, Description of Greece." Theoi E-Texts Library. http://www.theoi.com/Text/Pausanias1A.html (accessed April 26, 2014).

• Habicht, Christian. Pausanias' Guide to Ancient Greece. Vol. 50. University of California Press, 1998.

• Jones, W. H. S., and R. E. Wycherley. "Pausanias' Description of Greece, Loeb Classical Library, Vol." 170.

Worksheet Answers

When was Pausanias born: _________ (110AD)

What made him not just a standard geographer?: ______ (he also gives cultural and religious context as well as myths and political events)

What is he most famous works?: ________ (The Description of Greece)

Who did he believe founded the Olympic games?: _____________ (Herakles)

Why is he important to archeology? _______ (archeologist try to find similarities and continuity with his writings.