Ancient Greece’s Olympic Games were part of a large religious festival honoring the god, Zeus. They were hosted in the hilly environs of Olympia, along the Alpheus River in the region of Elis, and the Olympic administrative offices for the Games were located in Olympia’s Altis precinct, where the temples of Zeus and Hera were located. Traditionally, the Games were said to have been founded in the times of myth and legend, attributed to figures such as King Pelops (who lent his name to the Peloponnese and won a chariot race in his myths) or his famous descendant, Heracles, the mighty demigod adventurer. Myth and legend aside, the first properly documented Olympic Games sport event reportedly occurred in 776 BCE (considered the 1st Olympiad), at a time when only a sprinting competition (the stadion) took place. In the decades that followed, different types of foot and horse races, as well as wrestling, boxing, pankration (or pancratium) fighting, and other competitive events were soon added to the great festival. The vast majority of the competitions were sports, but every now and then it was not unheard of for a non-athletic contest to make an appearance in the ancient Games. Curiously, musical competitions appeared several times.
One great source for the ancient Olympics, the early Olympic champions, and their respective events, is the Palestinian–Roman historian, Eusebius (c. 260-339 CE), who recorded centuries-worth of Olympic competitions and champions in his Chronicon (or Chronicle). He mainly chronicled the winner of the stadion for each Olympiad, but the historian also made sure to note any time a new Olympic competition was added to the Games, or when anything truly spectacular took place, such as when an athlete triumphed in multiple events, or if there were crimes or scandals that occurred. It is in this context that musical events were mentioned in connection with the Olympic Games.
According to Eusebius’ list of Olympic competitions, the 26th Olympiad (676 BCE) may have played host to a curious competition for citharodes, namely bards who were masters of the cithara (a lyre-like string instrument). For full disclosure, this is the most dubious of the potential Olympic musical events. Nevertheless, this is what Eusebius wrote: “[26th Olympiad] Callisthenes of Laconia, stadion race. Philombrotus of Laconia won the pentathlon at three Olympic games. The Carneia, a contest for citharodes, was held for the first time” (Eusebius, Chronicle, Book II, The Greek Olympiads, entry for 26th Olympiad/676 BCE). The mention of the Carneia (or Carnea) is curious, as that was the name of a Dorian Greek festival honoring Apollo—specifically his form as Apollo Carneius (in which the god is depicted with a cithara or lyre). The Carnea festival was known to have been held in multiple cities, but Sparta was the location most associated with the celebration. Unfortunately, the Carneia festival remains largely obscure, but it is known to have featured music competitions and a running event. With this in mind, it is possible that Eusebius’ reference to citharodes and the Carneia during the 26th Olympiad may have been an allusion to an outside historical event, placed there for context and timeline purposes. Then again, it could be that a music competition or the Carneia footrace took place at the Olympics that year. Either way, the passage is vague.
More certainty can be found in the 96th Olympiad (396 BCE). That year saw the bizarre inclusion of contests for trumpeters and heralds in the Olympic Games. This was recorded by Eusebius, who wrote: “[96th Olympiad] Eupolemus of Elis, stadion race. A contest for trumpeters was added, and the winner was Timaeus of Elis. A contest for heralds was added, and the winner was Crates of Elis” (Eusebius, Chronicle, Book II, The Greek Olympiads, entry for 96th Olympiad/396 BCE). In this section of the chronicle, Eusebius was clearer. He specifically wrote that the competitions for trumpeters and heralds were “added,” insinuating that it was added to the Olympic Games. Also unlike with the citharodes and the Carneia, Eusebius was now able to provide the names of the winners of the events, with Timaeus of Elis emerging as the greatest trumpet player and Crates of Elis defeating his rival heralds on the Olympic stage.
Citharodes and heralds made a reappearance in another Olympics. In 65 CE, Emperor Nero (r. 54-68) called together the games of the 211th Olympiad, and he featured many of the unorthodox Olympic events. The great Roman historian, Tacitus (c. 56/57-117), wrote a scathing, unflattering account of Nero’s personal involvement in such competitions. He wrote:
“The five-yearly Games were now close. The senate tried to avert scandal by offering the emperor, in advance, the first prize for song, and also conferred on him a crown ‘for eloquence’ to gloss over the degradation attaching to the stage. But Nero declared that there was no need for favouratism or the senate’s authority; he would compete on equal terms and rely on the conscience of the judges to award him the prize he deserved. First he recited a poem on the stage. Then, when the crowd shouted that he should ‘display all his accomplishments’ (those were their actual words), he made a second entrée as a musician. Nero scrupulously observed harpists’ etiquette. When tired, he remained standing. To wipe away perspiration, he used nothing but the robe he was wearing. He allowed no moisture from his mouth or nose to be visible. At the conclusion, he awaited the verdict of the judges in assumed trepidation, on bended knee, and with a gesture of deference to the public. And the public at least, used to applauding the poses even of professional actors, cheered in measured, rhythmical cadences. They sounded delighted. Indeed, since the national disgrace meant nothing to them, perhaps they were” (Tacitus, The Annals of Imperial Rome, 16.4).
Eusebius corroborated that Nero competed in Olympic events centered on verse and music. And he mentioned a few more unusual competitions that Nero ushered into the Olympics. On this topic, Eusebius wrote, “[211th Olympiad] These games were not held [at the usual time] because Nero postponed them until his visit to Greece. They were held two years later, and Tryphon of Philadelphia won the stadion race. Nero was awarded the crown in the contests for heralds, performers of tragedy and citharodes; and also in the races for chariots drawn by colts, mature horses and ten colts” (Eusebius, Chronicle, Book II, The Greek Olympiads, entry for 211th Olympiad/65 CE). Therefore, not only were there musical competitions in the Olympic Games, but one of the musical Olympic champions was the infamous Emperor Nero.
Written by C. Keith Hansley
Picture Attribution: (Leto, Apollo, and Artemis, from a Terracotta bell-krater (bowl for mixing wine and water), attributed to the Villa Giulia Painter ca. 460–450 BCE, [Public Domain] via the MET).
Sources:
- Eusebius’ Chronicle, translated by Andrew Smith after the Petermann (c. 19th century) Modern Latin Translation, included in Eusebius: Collected Works (Delphi Classics, 2019).
- The Oxford Dictionary of Classical Myth and Religion, edited by Simon Price and Emily Kearns. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.
- https://www.attalus.org/armenian/euseb11.htm
- https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Tacitus/Annals/16*.html
- https://www.britannica.com/topic/Carneia
