Olympia, Greece

 

We began our visit at The Archeological Museum of Olympia

 Olympia (Greek: Ολυμπία Olympía), a sanctuary of ancient Greece in Elis, is known for having been the site of the Olympic Games in classical times, the most famous games in history.

The Olympic Games were held every four years throughout Classical Antiquity, from the 8th century BC to the 4th century AD.  The first Olympic Games were in honor of Zeus.

 

 The museum had a lot of good depictions of wrestling.  The event we would have like to seen the most is the hoplitodomos.

The last running event added to the Olympic program was the hoplitodromos, or "Hoplite race", introduced in 520 BC and traditionally run as the last race of the Olympic Games. The runners would run either a single or double diaulos (approximately 400 or 800 yards) in full or partial armour, carrying a shield and additionally equipped either with greaves or a helmet.  As the armour weighed between 50 and 60 lb (27 kg), the hoplitodromos emulated the speed and stamina needed for warfare. Due to the weight of the armour, it was easy for runners to drop their shields or trip over fallen competitors. In a vase painting depicting the event, some runners are shown leaping over fallen shields  The course they used for these runs were made out of clay, with sand over the clay.

 I think they are posing in front of the Palaestras.  This was a training centre for wrestlers, boxers, and long-jumpers. 

  This is the workshop where the enormous statue of Zeus, which used to be in the temple in the middle of the Olympic village, was made.  Later, it became a church.

 Olympic Twins

 The Temple of Zeus

The Statue of Zeus at Olympia was a giant seated figure, about 13 m (43 ft) tall, made by the Greek sculptor Phidias around 435 BC at the sanctuary of Olympia, Greece, and erected in the Temple of Zeus there. A sculpture of ivory plates and gold panels over a wooden framework, it represented the god Zeus sitting on an elaborate cedar wood throne ornamented with ebony, ivory, gold, and precious stones. It was regarded as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World until its eventual loss and destruction during the 5th century AD. No copy of the statue has ever been found, and details of its form are known only from ancient Greek descriptions and representations on coins.

 It was a billion degrees.  Pierre and the girls ran a race in the stadium.  When we got out our foam discus, someone appeared from the shade and told us to desist.  

There were no seats, but the embankment could easily seat 45,000 spectators.

When the pagan religions were suppressed, the institution of the Olympic games, which had flourished for twelve centuries, fell into disuse.

 The day we spent in Olympia was hot and involved too much driving.  None of us were at our best.  The next day, we stopped at a beach outside of Zacharo to break up the drive.  Notice my sun protection gear.  My dad would be proud.

 There were lots of cool rocks and shells and the girls could have stayed here all day.