Book contents
- Hellenistic Athletes
- Hellenistic Athletes
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Maps
- Tables
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Chapter 1 Introduction
- Chapter 2 What’s New in Hellenistic Athletics?
- Chapter 3 Athlete and Polis
- Chapter 4 Athlete and Koinon
- Chapter 5 Victorious Kings
- Chapter 6 Becoming Greek through Athletics
- Chapter 7 Conclusion
- References
- General Index
Chapter 5 - Victorious Kings
The Self-Representation of a “New Society of Victors”
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 16 March 2024
- Hellenistic Athletes
- Hellenistic Athletes
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Maps
- Tables
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Chapter 1 Introduction
- Chapter 2 What’s New in Hellenistic Athletics?
- Chapter 3 Athlete and Polis
- Chapter 4 Athlete and Koinon
- Chapter 5 Victorious Kings
- Chapter 6 Becoming Greek through Athletics
- Chapter 7 Conclusion
- References
- General Index
Summary
This chapter investigates the role of Hellenistic kings and queens as victorious horse owners. It is asked to which degree the different dynasties of the period used equestrian victories as a means of representation. The fact that Philip II and his son Alexander had a different approach to agonistic competition gave leeway to their successors’ competitive behavior: Whereas the Antigonids and Seleucids refrained from equestrian competition, the Ptolemies became the most successful royal family in terms of athletics. They sponsored promising athletes, established a new category of contests, and were imitated by their courtiers with regard to their engagement in chariot races. In the agonistic context, the Ptolemies presented themselves as a victorious, Macedonian dynasty which integrated the female members of the family into an image of power. The Attalids, in contrast, labelled themselves a loving family of united brothers in which no disputes over the throne ever occurred.
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- Hellenistic AthletesAgonistic Cultures and Self-Presentation, pp. 233 - 275Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2024