The Ancient Olympics - Nigel Spivey

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Résumé :
A portrait of the Greek Olympics as they really were - fierce contests between bitter rivals, in which victors won kudos and rewards, and losers faced scorn and even assault. After reading this book, no one will see the Olympics as a graceful display of Greek beauty again, but as war by other means.

Biographie:
Nigel Spivey is Senior Lecturer in Classical Art and Archaeology at the University of Cambridge, where he also is a Fellow of Emmanuel College. As an undergraduate he won honours at the Oxford-Cambridge athletics match, and set the university record for throwing the hammer. He went on to study at the British School at Rome and the University of Pisa. He has written widely on Classical culture and beyond: among his previous publications are the prize-winning Understanding Greek Sculpture (1996) and the widely acclaimed Enduring Creation (2001). He presented the major BBC/PBS television series How Art Made the World in 2005.

Sommaire:
Foreword to the New Edition ; Overture ; 1. 'War Minus the Shooting' ; 2. In Training for Beautiful Goodness ; 3. The Programme of Agony ; 4. Sweet Victory ; 5. The Politics of Contest ; 6. Olympia: The Origins ; 7. Olympia: The Afterlife ; Epilogue ; Sources and Further Reading ; Index

Engaging, well written and thought provoking. Michael Scott, The Anglo-Hellenic Review No. 47