Heracles at Olympia and the Exclusion of Women from the Ancient Olympic Games

Author(s): John Mouratidis

Source: Journal of Sport History , Winter, 1984, Vol. 11, No. 3 (Winter, 1984), pp. 41-55
Published by: University of Illinois Press

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Journal of Sport History, Vol. 1 1 , No. 3 (Winter, 1984)

Heracles at Olympia and the

Exclusion of Women from the
Ancient Olympic Gamesf
John Mouratidis *

The purpose of this paper is to accomplish the following goals: a) to exam-

ine a question which has been ignored: that Heracles was the hero-athlete in
Olympia in whose honour games were held before Zeus took over the Olym-
pic festival in the sixth century, b) to discuss the exclusion of women from the
ancient Olympic Games. We believe that this particular problem is closely
connected with the presence of Heracles at Olympia.
The overwhelming majority of traditional testimony in the ancient Greek
authors connected the founding of the Olympic Games with Heracles son of
Alcmene.1 Pindar's testimony on the founding of the games was the most
ancient and ascribed the foundation of the games to Heracles. Pindar said that
Heracles returning from his victory over the Elean King Augeas founded the
games at the ancient tomb of Pelops.2 The story of Heracles' founding the
games probably had its roots in the Dorian Peloponnese. It was just natural,
Gardiner said "that the great athletic hero of the Dorians should be regarded
as the founder of the greatest athletic festival."3 The Dorians claimed Hera-
cles as their ancestor long before they came to the Peloponnese. They had a
special reason to claim that they were descended from Heracles: he was the
most popular hero of the Greeks, known as strong and great, an averter of
evils, a great athlete, and a helper in all difficulties. Heracles was not only a
Dorian; but in fact he was more Mycenaean than Dorian. He was a Pan-
hellenic figure worshipped and honoured in almost all Hellenic communities.
He was mentioned by Homer4 several times in both the Iliad and the Odyssey ,
and tradition made him a beloved hero both among the Mycenaeans and Dori-
t The author is grateful for the comments and criticism from the anonymous reviewers of the Journal of
Sport History.
* Mr. Mouratidis is a Visiting Lecturer in the Department of Physical Education at McGill University,
Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3N 2K5.
1 . Pindar, Ol 10.5.26-85; 2.3-4; 6.67-70; Lysias, Olymp. 33. 1-2. For more on the founding of the Games
see: Polybios 12.26.2; Paus. 5.7.9; Apollodoros 2.7.2; Diodoros Sic. 4.53.4-5, 4.14.1-3; 5.64.6. Pausanias
5.7.6; 5.8.1 as well as Diodoros Sic. 5.64.6 presented the theory of the antiquarians of Elis that the Idaean
Daktyls or Couretes, among them Heracles, who came from Crete instituted the Olympic Games. This view
was supported by J. Harrison ( Themis , p. 372) and rejected, on good grounds by Farnell ( Greek Hero
Cults . . . , pp. 130, 131, 134-5). Some of these ideas about Heracles expressed in this paper have been
advanced in my dissertation.
2. Pindar Ol 10.23-31. For references concerning the story of Augeas and Heracles see: J. Balcer "The
Mycenaean Dam atTiryns," AJA 78 (1974), p. 149.
3. Gardiner, Olympia . . . , p. 51.
4. Iliad 2.653, 658, 659, 679; 14.324; 18. 1 15-1 17; Odyssey 8.224; 1 1 .268, 601-604; 21 .26.

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Journal of Sport History, Vol. 1 1 , No. 3 (Winter, 1984)

ans. With the destruction of the Mycenaean centers and the coming of the
Dorians, he became the exclusive Dorian hero. The choice of Heracles by the
Dorians as their preferred hero was after all an appropriate choice. The hero
was connected with athletic contests,5 as it becomes known from many char-
acteristics of the hero-athlete legend that are 4 4 scattered throughout the Hera-
cles cycle."6 In the Odyssey while Odysseus was boasting of his athletic skill
before the men of his generation in a contest in archery, he admitted the supe-
riority in archery of former men like Heracles and Eurytos.7 Consequently the
Dorians would have had little difficulty making their popular hero the likely
founder of the Olympic festival. After all Heracles was, among other things,
an especially strong man and fine athlete.8
If it was indeed just natural that the great athletic hero of the Dorians should
be widely regarded as the founder of the greatest athletic festival9 then another
question arises: was Heracles also the hero in whose honour the games were
held? At this point one further line of reasoning should be considered: heroes
were honoured in both prehistoric and historic Greece with festivals and
games. So it is very likely that the Dorians held games in honour of their great
hero. It is probable that some time during the Dark Ages Heracles was gradu-
ally introduced at Olympia as the hero athlete.
It is generally believed that the worship of Zeus was introduced at Olympia
in the early 8th century B.C. when the games, according to tradition, started.
This view, which downplays the role of Heracles as the founder of the games,
seems arbitrary since there is nothing in the material remains to indicate that
Zeus was worshipped at Olympia and games were held there in his honour at
that early date. The evidence that will follow, shows that Zeus came to Olym-
pia much later, probably after the 50th Olympiad when, as we know, impor-
tant changes took place at Olympia. The coming of Zeus to Olympia and the
departure of Heracles coincided with some noteworthy events: at ca. 576 B.C.
(the year of the 50th Olympiad) the Eleans, who according to tradition, dis-
liked Heracles, gained a decisive success over Pisa, the city which up to that
time held the presidency of the games. It is probable that some myths about
the founding of the games by Heracles the Dactyl10 from Crete (not the Greek
hero) were also introduced at that time. The presence of Zeus is evident after
5. For references see: Birgitta Bergquist, Heracles on Thasos (Uppsala, 1973), p. 86; Susan Woodford,
"Cults of Heracles in Attica" in D. G. Mitten (ed.) Studies Presented to George Hanfmann (Mainz, 1971), pp.
21 1-220. In the Victor List of Julius Africanus there are references to Heracles competing at Olympia.
6. J. Fontenrose, "The Hero as Athlete," California Studies in Classical Antiquity 1 (1968), p. 86.
7. Odyssey 8.223. Eurytos was Heracles' archery teacher. See Diod. Sic. 3.67.2; 4. 10.2; Theokr. 24. 103-
140; Paus. 9.29.9; Athen. 164b-d; Plaut. Bacch. 155; Apollod. 2.63.
8. For Heracles' wrestling with Acheloos see: Sophocles Trachin. 15-21; Ovid Met 9.1.82-88; Dio Crys.
5.7; Apollod. 1.18;. 1.52; 1.148; 2.5.7; 3.88; 3.93; Prop. 2.34.33; Hygin. Fab 30; Diodor. Sic. 4.35.3. For
Heracles's wrestling with Antaios see Appollod. 2.5.2. See Theokritos 24.111 and Apollod. 2. 49, who men-
tioned that Heracles was taught boxing and wrestling. Apollodoros (2.63) also said that Heracles was taught
chariot driving by Amphitryon, armed fighting by Castor, and the cithara by Linos. This tradition certainly had
its roots in Mycenaean Greece. Nilsson ( The Mycenaean Origin . . . , p. 220) believed that the myths of
Heracles developed in the Mycenean age.
9. Gardiner, Olympia . . . , p. 51.
10. Dactyloi were little 4 'culture-daimones of Minoan Crete. They were medicine men and inventors of all
arts of life. The metal- working side of these figures comes out best in the kindred Dactyls and Telchines (see
Harrison, Themis ... p. 26).

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 Heracles at Olympia

the 50th Olympiad in some artifacts and on coins which the Eleans had issued.
With the coming of Zeus to Olympia Heracles was no longer the hero-athlete;
instead he became a god. The hero was so popular among the Greeks that his
displacement by his father would not have happened without compensation,
in this case a promotion to godly status. The evidence that we have from
Greek art supports the hypothesis that the apotheosis of the hero took place at
this time.11 Heracles also, according to tradition12 founded at Olympia six
double altars one of which was dedicated to Zeus and Poseidon. It is probable
that it has been the custom for Olympian victors to celebrate their victory by
sacrificing upon them.13 This group of six double altars is certainly not primi-
tive, since the conception of a group of Twelve Gods even though widely
spread, was a comparatively late development of the Greek religion.14 Weni-
ger assigned the founding of these six double altars to the 50th Olympiad and
Gardiner believed that no time seems more probable. 15
Those who accepted the introduction of Zeus at Olympia in 776 B.C. must
confront a major problem: the Olympic festival during the 8th and part of the
7th century was an unimportant local festival, as becomes clear from the
material remains as well as from literary evidence. To that extent it is unlikely
that the Greeks dedicated an insignificant local festival to their greatest god,
assuming that Zeus was regarded as such at that time. It is rather possible that
Zeus and Olympia grew in importance during the same period in the minds of
the Greeks. The evidence indicates that Zeus of Homer did not have any
sanctuary at Olympia in the 8th or 7th century. During this, period Olympia
was the scene of a hero cult. Geometric vases from many parts of the Greek
mainland dated 760 B.C. represent funeral ceremonies and games in honour
of heroes.16 The apparently sudden emergence of these geometric vases repre-
senting agonistic contests and other funeral ceremonies surprised the archae-
ologists who in trying to explain the impulse to this 4 'epoch-making develop-
ment" turn their eyes 4 'almost automatically to Olympia, its funerary games
and hero cults."17 The evidence is such that we cannot escape the conclusion
that during the 8th and 7th centuries Zeus was not honored at Olympia. Thus,
long before the arrival of Zeus at Olympia we have the presence at Olympia of
Heracles, the son of Alcmene. Many of the bronzes found at Olympia repre-
sent warriors armed with large helmets and small shields and spears. It is pos-
sible that these helmeted statues represent Heracles. The archaic types of

11. H. Metzger, Les Representations dans la Ceramique Attique du IVe Siècle (Paris, 1951), p. 216. Ac-
cording to Diodoros Sic. the Athenians believed that they were the first among the Greeks to honour Heracles as
a god, and that the other Greeks followed their example. According to Arrian ( Anab . 4. 1 1 .7), however, it was a
Delphic oracle that confirmed the apotheosis of Heracles.
12. Pindar Ol 5. These altars were dedicated to the following pairs of deities: Zeus and Poseidon, Hera and
Athena, Hermes and Apollo, Dionysos and the Charités, Artemis and Alpheios, Kronos and Rhea.
13. Gardiner, Olympia . . . , p. 198.
14. Ibid.
15. Ibid.
16. P. Kahane, "The Cesnola Krater from Kourion in the Metropolitan Museum of Arts: An Icono
Study in Greek Geometric Art," in Noel Robertson (ed.), The Archaeology of Cyprus: Recent Developme
(N.Jersey, 1975), p. 181.
17. Ibid., p. 183.

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Journal of Sport History, Vol. 1 1 , No. 3 (Winter, 1984)

Heracles represent an active, fighting Heracles and not until classical times do
we have the type of passive Heracles standing in repose. 18 Farnell emphasized
the same point of view when he stated:
General Evidence convinces us that the heroic and warlike is his aboriginal
aspect. We should therefore expect to find him worshipped as a warrior, as a
power that gave aid in war. And there is sufficient record to prove that this side
of his character was recognized in actual cult, especially in such warlike com-
munities as Thebes and Sparta. 19

There is enough evidence to show that Heracles' aboriginal aspect was in-
deed warlike and heroic: he was the protector of the brave soldiers and co-
wards never won the sympathy of the hero. Pindar sings and praises Heracles
as the founder of the Olympic Games out of spoils of his warfare.20 Archaic
cult practices in the shrines of Heracles in Thasos included, among other cere-
monies, military contests.21 In Hesiod the hero appears with full panoply in
his struggle with Cyknos.22 An archaic amphora, now in the Louvre Museum,
represents Heracles as a warrior with shield and spear.23 In addition a My-
cenaean vase, found at Enkomi shows Heracles with a conical helmet.24 Pau-
sanias25 mentioned a sanctuary of Heracles in Sparta with an armed statue of
the hero; the explanatory legend attached to this statue is a pre-Dorian event of
the battle of Heracles with Hippokoon and his sons. Heracles was also known
to the poets as 4 'the leader of armies and the taker of cities."26 The Olympian
hymn, which was the triumphal song of Heracles, written by Archilochos of
Paros (ca. 714-676) represents the hero as soldier.27 Two helmeted athletes
depicted on a leg found at Olympia, dated late 8th century B.C., are inter-
preted as Heracles and Apollo claiming a tripod as their prize.28 Both material
and literary sources, as has been shown, indicate that Heracles originally ap-
peared as a warrior. So it is reasonable to conclude that these bronze primitive

18. Birgitta Bergquist, Heracles on Thasos , p. 60.

19. Farnell, Greek Hero Cults . . . , p. 146. An interesting point of view has been expressed by W.
Burkert who says: . . Heracles is basically, not a heroic figure in the Homeric sense; he is not a warrior
fighting warriors, he is mainly concerned with animals, just as he is a savage clad in a skin; and his main job is
to tame and bring back the animals which are eaten by man." (see Walter Burkert, Structure and History in
Greek Mythology and Ritual , Berkeley, Los Angeles-London, 1979, p. 94.)
20. Pindaro/, 2.1.4.
21 . Birgitta Bergquist, Heracles on Thasos, p. 41 .
22. Hesiod, The Shield of Heracles passim.
23. R. Flaceliere et P. Devambez, Heracles Images et Récits (Paris, 1966), Plate XII.
24. See V. Karageorgis, "Myth and Epic in Mycenaean Vase Painting," AJA 62 (1958), p. 386. Kara-
georgis discussed with Webster the possibility that the figure may be Heracles in the Garden of the Hesperide
They concluded that this is probable and that this myth probably existed in Mycenaean times.
25. Paus. 3.15.3
26 . Athen . 12.512e quoted Megacleides .
27. Archilochos Frag. 119. Martin L. West commenting on the hymn said: ". . .the metre an
the piece, and its lack of content, are against Archilochus' authorship." In West's opinion the hymn
gious associations" and "played a part in some cultic happening." (see Martin L. West, Studies in
and Iambus, Berlin-New York, 1974, p. 139.)
28. For references see Gardiner, Olympia . . . , p. 94, fig. 24. There are not less than 89 exi
of ancient art on which the subject of the contest between Heracles and Apollo is depicted. The
black-figured vases; 18 red-figured vases; 8 marble reliefs; 3 terracottas; and 2 engraved gems. For
ences see Frazer Pausanias 5. 13.7. K. J. Dover, Greek Homosexuality (New York 1979), p. 8 say
that story that Heracles tried to carry off the tripod from the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi, a story illu
more than 1 50 vases and by some important sculpture . .

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 Heracles at Olympia

figurines of warriors armed with large helmets, small round shields, and
spears, found at Olympia, represent Heracles. These were votive offerings of
the victorious athletes dedicated to him and took the form of the hero. In a
later age, the votive offerings at Olympia often took the form of Zeus in
whose honour then the games were held. Even though the classical Greeks
regarded Heracles as the divine and invincible helper of life, as the 4 'good
comrade and guardian angel," it is also true that he was regarded sometimes
as a warrior too.29 Modern authors rightly call Heracles 'The Greek happy
warrior/'30
The presence of Heracles at Olympia is particularly noticeable during and
after the second half of the seventh century. One early relief possibly repre-
sents Heracles 4 'offering sacrifice at the founding of the Olympic Games."31
The hero also may "be recognized in the figure of an archer cut out of a sheet
of bronze, a technique common at Olympia but rare elsewhere."32 Heracles
also appears on a relief shooting at a wounded centaur, as well as on another
relief representing him and the Old Man of the Sea.33 This last representation
of Heracles seems rather interesting because the inscription in early Argive
characters written from right to left indicates that it came from Argos.34
In the ninth Olympian Ode Pindar35 mentioned the famous Kallinikos or
victory song in honour of Heracles, attributed to Archilochos:
Tenella Kallinike!
Hail Lord Heracles!
You and Iolaos, soldiers Two,
Tenella Kallinike!
Hail Lord Heracles.36

This hymn was sung by the Olympic victor's friends celebrating his success
in the games. It was not itself an epinician ode; it was rather a hymn to Hera-
cles.37 It is interesting that this song of Heracles was written by a poet who
lived at the end of the 8th and the beginning of the 7th century. The existence
29. In a figured lekythos dated early 5th century, Heracles appears as a hoplite armed with helmet and
shield (see R. Flacelière et P. Devambez, Heracles Images et Récits (Paris, 1966), p. 57, fig. VII). At Thebes
we hear from Pausanias (9. 1 1 . 1) of his statue called Promachos (the champion of the city) and when the The-
bans had defeated the Phokians in the sacred war, they set up a dedication in the temple of Heracles (see Paus.
10.13.6). In Xenophon' s Anabasis (6.5.25; 6.2.18), Heracles is called Hegemon (army leader) in the battle of
the ten thousand Greeks against the Bithynians. Heracles was known in Macedonia as Arytos (the warlike).
From Herodotos (6. 108 and 1 16) we learn that in 490 B.C. the Athenian troops, in order to meet the Persians at
Marathon, took up their position in the sanctuary of Heracles and stayed there for a few days before the battle.
After their decisive victory they honoured Heracles, their protector, by placing much more importance to his
cult and festival at Marathon. For references regarding Heracles' sanctuary at Marathon see Eugene Vanderpool
Hesperia 11, (1942), p. 336 n. 13. The festival of Heracles at Marathon, according to an inscription found
there, became Pan- Attic and its games even attained a Panhellenic character since athletes from many Greek
states participated in the games. (See Vanderpool Hesperia , 1 1 , 1942, p. 336)
30. For references of "The Greek Happy Warrior" as well as for his shrines and temples, see: David M.
Robinson "A New Heracles Relief," Hesperia 17, (1948), pp. 138-139.
31. For references see Gardiner, Olympia . . . , p. 94, fig. 24.
32. Ibid., fig. 20.
33. Ibid., fig. 19.
34. Ibid. , fig . 94 .
35. Pindar, 0/.9.1.
36. Archilochos Sappho Alkman, Trans, by Guy Davenport (Berkeley, Los Angeles, London, 1980), p.
42.
37. Lilian Lawler, "Orchesis Kallinikos," TAPA 79, 1948, p. 255.

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Journal of Sport History, Vol. 1 1 , No. 3 (Winter, 1984)

of this hymn can only be explained by the very fact that the hero had some-
thing to do with contests and the place. Heracles was mentioned by Archilo-
chos as Kallinikos (splendidly victorious38 or handsome in triumph39), an epi-
thet which connected the hero with games and fair victory. The adjective
Kallinikos, it is believed, is actually a cult title of Heracles from earliest
times.40 According to Diogenes Laertios41 the name of Heracles with the
epithet Kallinikos was inscribed over doorways to avert evil. The adjective
Kallinikos has an explicit and unequivocal connection with Heracles as it be-
comes known from literary and archaeļogical evidence.42 In the Heracles of
Euripides43 the chorus of men avowedly singing and dancing the Kallinikos in
honour of Heracles like the Delian maidens who dance in honour of Apollo.44
It was during Apollo's athletic festival that the Delian maidens hymned the
god with song and dance. The only other hymn that we can remember is
Apollo's hymn sung to the lyre in the Pythian games rehearsing the god's
victorious struggle over Pytho.45 One should always remember that for the
games at Delphi, Olympia served as a model and that the games were held in
honour of Apollo in order to commemorate his victory. It is reasonable to
assume that the hymn written by Archilochos was sung from the beginning for
the hero athlete of Olympia in whose honour the games were held, and later
when Heracles was displaced by Zeus, the hymn was sung for the victor by
his friends.
An interesting suggestion has been made by C. Kerenyi regarding the intro-
duction of Zeus at Olympia. He said:
Not till the middle of the eighth century at the earliest did Zeus take his place in
the series which began with these rudely masculine representations. Indeed, it
is possible that Zeus only did so by displacing the Kourete-like young god,
Hera's original cult associate, who took time to achieve this promotion. It is
possible, too, that a bearded Zeus was substituted for the Heracles standing
beside the enthroned goddess, particularly when Zeus' s nature began to change
in this direction. A 4 4 Daktyl Heracles" was the partner of the great moon god-
dess Hera in Olympia almost to the middle of the eighth century. At this time it
was that Homer's poetry made its contribution to the final shaping of the two
religions, the Hera cult and the Zeus religion.46

Kerenyi 's first statement that Zeus was introduced at Olympia in the middle

38. Lexikon to Pindar , edited by W. I. Slater (Berlin, 1960), p. 263.

39. Pindar's Victory Songs, trans, by F. J. Nisetich (Baltimore, 1980), p. 125.
40. See Apollodoros Bibl. 2.64; I.G. 12.5.234; Farnell Cults of the Greek States I. ref. 137b and IV ref. 4.
41. Diog. Laert. 6.50.
42. See Euripides Heracles 180, 570, 582, 673-681; Apollod. 2. 135; Poilus 4. 100; Athen. 14.618c; I.G.
12.5.234 (inscription from Paros); BCH 4.1880, p. 159 (inscription from Eretria), BCH 59, 1935 (inscription
from Thasos); Aristoph. Achar. 1230; Birds 1764; Artemidoros 2.37; JHS 1901 , pp. 290-291; Revue Archaeo-
logique 1877 p. 107. Similar epithets given to Heracles were: Aniketos (invincible) (see Priene Insc. 194; I.G.
3. 3817; JHS 1887, p. 505), epinikios (of victory, victorious) and nikephoros (victorious). (See Farnell Greek
Hero Cults. . . , p. 149).
43. Eurip. Heracles, 687-690.
44. Lillian Lawler, "Orchesis . . TAPA 1948, p. 265.
45. On Apollo and Python see: Eur. Iph. Taur. 1235-1252; Apoll. Rhod. 2.705-173; Callim. Hymn 2.97-
104; Lucian, Dial. Mar. 10; Claudian 2. 1-16; Hyg. Fab. 53, 140, Horn. Hymn 3.356-74; Ovid Met. 1.438-451;
Paus. 2.7.7-9; 10.6.5-7; Plut. Mor. 293c; Stat. Theb. 1.557-668; Strabo 9.3.5.
46. C. Kerenyi, Zeus and Hera, Trans. byC. Holme (New Jersey, 1975), p. 138.

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 Heracles at Olympia

of the eighth century is not in agreement with the archaeological, or literary

evidence presented here. Kerenyi's statement that Zeus displaced a "Daktyl
Heracles" who was the partner of Hera is also a matter of dispute. The young
partner or consort or son was always associated with the Earth Goddess of
fertility and vegetation throughout the Aegian and Anatolian world. The evi-
dence does not connect the worship of Hera with any young partner. Farnell
showed with strong arguments that Hera's credentials as Earth Goddess are
very poor.47 The concept of "Dactyl Heracles" whose origin was Crete is
also a matter of argument. Farnell called the identification of Heracles with
the Cretan Idaean Daktyls "the most incongruous confusion in Greek mythol-
ogy"48 and he explained why:
... for these latter were a daimonistic company of dwarfs, ministers or atten-
dants of the great goddess of Crete, semi-hieratic beings much connected with
mysteries . . . having no secular tradition but devoted to the arts of metallurgy;
. . .but not for the robust Hellenic hero of high epic achievement who was no
mystic devotee, had no natural affinity with orgiastic earth-mother, no interest
in the arts, and who, if not a giant, was certainly no dwarf and whose career
was on the whole human and secular.49

The story of the Idaean Heracles was a fabrication of late birth since neither
Pindar nor Herodotos, both interested in the Hellenic hero, mentioned any-
thing about a Cretan Heracles.50 The earliest author who supported the theory
for Heracles the Dactyl appears to have been Onomakritos, an Athenian poet
of the 6th century B.C., who has been called "an oracle-monger and a forger
of spurious literature."51 The above opinion is supported by literary evidence
since we learn that Onomakritos edited the oracles of Musaeus and was ex-
pelled from Athens by his friend Hipparchos for forging one of the oracles.52
Herodotos mentioned that Onomakritos was caught in the very act of the for-
gery by a certain Lasos of Hermione.53 In Persia, where he fled, he continued
his career as forger of oracles with remarkable success.54 We also learn from
Clement of Alexandria that he forged poems in the name of Orpheus.55 But
Onomakritos was not alone in making the Daktyl Heracles at home in Olym-
pia. The Eleans themselves, as tradition made clear, had good reasons to work

47. Farnell, The Cults of the Greek States , I. 180-94. Farnell I. 180 said: "The worship of Hera, as it is
presented to us in Homer and in the cults, has become divested of the physical meaning or symbolism, whatever
that was . . .but we cannot award to Hera any particular province of nature. ' '
48. Farnell , Greek Hero Cults . . . , p. 125.
49. Ibid. It has also been pointed out that 4 'No plausible connection between the hero and this gnome-like
being has ever been suggested." (see Oxford Classical Dictionary, Second Ed., Edited by N. G. L. Hammond
and H. H. Scullard, Oxford, 1978, p. 499.)
50. Ibid., 130-131. Pindar, as Farnell said, was interested in Thebes, Olympia, Heracles and the Great
Mother but he did not mention the Daktyl Heracles. Herodotos, who described in detail the Egyptian theory of
the origin of Heracles (see 2.43-45) and made a distinction between the Egyptian, the Tyrian and the Thasian
Heracles, nowhere mentioned the Cretan Daktyl. Farnell made it clear that neither the legend nor the cult of the
great Hellenic hero was of vital force in Crete.
51. Ibid., p. 126. The story of the Idaean Heracles was told by other authors as well but their source was
Onomakritos. See Paus. 1.22.7; 8.31.3; 8.37.5; 9.35.5; Cicero De Nat. Deor. 3. 16; Diodor, Sic. 5.5.65.
52. Herod. 7.6.
53. Ibid.
54. See Herod. 7.6.
55. Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 1.21.131.

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Journal of Sport History, Vol. 1 1 , No. 3 (Winter, 1984)

up the personality of the Idaean Heracles, proclaiming him as a Cretan Dak-

tyl, and utilizing him in rivalry to the son of Alcmene.56 It becomes evident
from Pausanias57 that in his time the old Eleans strongly disliked Heracles, the
son of Alcmene because the latter had killed the Elean king Augeas, the Elean
heroes Molionides, the Minyan Neleus and his sons who had deep roots in
Elis.58 Pausanias said that it was Iphitos the Aetolian who persuaded the
Eleans to sacrifice to Heracles who was, until then, an enemy of the Eleans.59
It appears from the evidence that the Cretan Heracles' connection with Olym-
pia and the founding of the games is questionable and should be regarded as a
fabrication.
With regard to the helmeted, unbearded bronze statues found at Olympia
that we have already identified with Heracles, Kerenyi stated that the epithet
"Parastates" (one who stands beside) was brought to Olympia by Heracles
and not by Zeus who was a "by-stander." So Kerenyi continued, "were
Heracles' role as Parastates not so emphatically connected with his quality of
an Idaean Daktyl, we might with more justification identify the helmeted,
unbearded figurines with Heracles than with Zeus."60 But the name Parastates
had nothing to do with the Idaean Daktyls, it was simply "a natural name for
the Hellenic hero"61 and the Greeks were deeply devoted to Heracles ap-
pealed to him as the divine helper, 4 4 as the typical Parastates, the good com-
rade and guardian angel . . ."62 There is very little doubt that the helmeted
bronze statues of Olympia represent Heracles, the son of Alcmene, the hero in
whose honour the games were held almost up to the 50th Olympiad.
We have to accept Heracles "from very old times as an almost Panhellenic
hero"63 whom the Greeks considered their hero of heroes. On Heracles as a
Panhellenic figure Guthrie wrote:
He was, for example, the only one to transcend completely the borders which
divided the small communities of Greece. He was an exception to the rule that
heroes were local and tied to a grave. So completely did he become the posses-
sion of the whole of Greece that no single city is recorded as having claimed to
possess his tomb. . . . The Greeks took him to their hearts and into their
homes, which some of them sought to protect by writing this charm over the
door: 4 'The son of Zeus, the conqueror dwells here, Heracles. Let no evil thing
come near."64

It is evident that a hero like Heracles would gather the rival Greeks together
at Olympia to compete peacefully with one another. We have every reason to
believe that Olympia served from the very beginning of the games as a place
of peace and reconciliation. The rivalry between the Greeks was not only a
56. Farnell, Greek Hero Cults . . . , p. 130.
57. Paus. 5.4.6.
58. For Heracles' slaying of Molionides see Paus. 5.2.1-3. For the slaying of all Neleus's sons
Nestor see Iliad 1 1 . 689-694.
59. Farnell, Greek Hero Cults . . . , p. 130. Also see Paus. 5.4.6.
60. Kerenyi, Zeus and Hera, pp. 136-137.
61. Farnell, Greek Hero Cults . . . , p. 129.
62. Ibid., p. 148.
63. Ibid., pp. 134-5.
64. W. K. C. Guthrie, The Greeks and Their Gods (Boston, 1967), p. 239. Also see Diog. Laert. 6.50.

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 Heracles at Olympia

classical phenomenon; it definitely had its roots before historical times. Ly-
sias, an Athenian orator of the fifth century B.C., said that Heracles founded
the Olympic festival because he believed that the gathering of the Greeks at
Olympia would be for them the beginning of mutual good fellowship and
goodwill.65 According to the historian Polybios, Heracles also founded the
Olympic truce.66 But Heracles could not play the role of harmonizer forever.
This apparently was due to a number of reasons: a) Olympia and its festival
gained in fame and power, attracting the attention of the whole Greek world;
b) the acceptance of Zeus by the fighting Greeks as the father of gods and men
and as their peacemaker; c) the overplaying by the Dorians in general and
Sparta in particular of their Heracleid descent; and d) the appearance of Peisis-
tradis in Athens. The last reason probably gave an impetus to the wide circula-
tion of Theseus legends. It is believed that the development of Theseus as a
Panhellenic hero with a number of labours67 to compare with those of the
Dorian Heracles took place during the time of Peisistratos and his sons,68 who
encouraged the growth of Theseus' popularity.69 Theseus was not only a be-
nevolent hero, but like his opponent Heracles he instituted games and festi-
vals.70 In addition, the Athenian hero's fame was extended beyond the bor-
ders of Attica by making him an all-Ionian hero to set against the Dorian hero
Heracles.71 The attempt of the Peisistratids to develop and spread the legend
of Theseus is evident since there is no prehistoric origin in Theseus' legend.72
Some argue that the worship of Heracles was much older, deeper and more
widespread in Attica than that of Theseus.73 The literary evidence also agrees
that the Athenians were the first to grant divine honours to Heracles.74
The legend of Theseus, developed during the time of the Peisistratids, or
immediately after them as some believe.75 by no means promoted the cause of
friendship and reconciliation among the Greeks. The time was ripe for the
introduction of Zeus as a harmonizer of Hellas. The choice of Zeus was a
necessity for the Greeks who saw that Zeus' acceptance as a Panhellenic god
possessed a political importance. On this Farnell said: "But his worship has a

65. Lysias, Olymp. 33.1-2.

66. Polybios, 12.26.
67. For Theseus' labours see: Bacch. 17.16-30; Ovid Met. 7, Diod. Sic. 4.59. 2-5; Hyg. Fab 38, 41, 43;
Astr. 2.5; Paus. 1.20.3.; 1.22.5; 1.39.2; 1 .44.8; 2. 1 .3; 10.28.2; Plut. Thes. 6, 11, 15, 22.
68. A. Andrews, The Greek Tyrants (New York), 1963, p. 114, Theseus is mentioned in the Homeric
Epics but, as A Ward {The Quest for Theseus , p. 144) said, some of these references have been suspected by
ancient and modern authors as late additions by Peisistratos or by other Athenians. For an alternative point of
view regarding the introduction of Theseus to Athens by Peisistratos see: Ruth Glynn, "Heracles, Nereus and
Triton: A Study of Iconography in Sixth Century Athens," AJA 85 (1981), p. 130. The author believes that
Heracles was the hero of Peisistratean Athens, and when the Peisistradeids lost power and had been driven out
of Athens, then Theseus became the hero of the new democracy.
69. Ward, The Quest . . . , p. 145. Also see Nilsson, {The Mycenaean Origin . . . , who believed that
Theseus gained ground from the days of the Peisistratidae.
70. We are told by Plutarch ( Theseus 22-25) and Thucydides (2.15) that Theseus founded the Isthmian
games in honour of his father Poseidon. Theseus also instituted a contest in Delos and was the first to give a
palm to the victorious athletes, (see: Plut. Theseus 21; Call. Del. 312; Poll. 4. 101 .)
71. Ward, The Quest . . . , p. 506.
72. See Nilsson, The Mycenaean Origin . . . , p. 165.
73. Susan Woodford, "Cults of Heracles . . ." in Mitten (Ed), Studies Presented . . . , p. 212.
74. See Isocrates 5.33; Paus. 1 .15.3; 1 .32.4; Diodor. Sic. 5.4.39.
75. For reference see: Ruth Glynn, "Heracles, Nereus . . AJA 85 (1981), p. 103 n. 84.

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Journal of Sport History, Vol. 1 1 , No. 3 (Winter, 1984)

political significance higher than any other, for he alone regarded the unity of
Greece and his cult was pre-eminently Hellenic and not merely local or tri-
bal."76 Zeus' character as harmonizer and peace-maker is clearly exposed in
Pheidias' work at Olympia: on one of the panels that ran between the legs and
the throne of Zeus, Heracles and Theseus, the opponents, appear as allies
fighting against the Amazons. The final attempt to reconcile the two heroes
was to emphasize their common descent: both were great-grandsons of Pel-
ops.77
Even after the introduction of Zeus at Olympia Heracles still remained a
great hero not only in Olympia, but almost all over the Greek world. The
twelve labours of the hero were sculptured in relief in twelve metopes on the
temple of Zeus at Olympia. There were many sanctuaries of Heracles in At-
tica, most of them connected with a gymnasium, where games were regularly
held in his honour.78 In Euboea,79 Thasos,80 Marathon,81 and Rhodes82 games
were celebrated to honour Heracles who was regarded with Hermes as the
patron of the gymnasiums.83
More research into the personality of the 4 4 hero-god" 84 Heracles will reveal
other important connections that he had with games and festivals in general
and the Olympic Games in particular. For example, one problem which still
remains unsolved and which will be discussed in this paper is that of the ex-
clusion of women from the ancient Olympic Games.
Pausanias85 informs us that no women was allowed to watch the Olympic
Games or even to cross the Alpheios river during the forbidden days. The

76. Farnell, Cults of the Greek . . . , I. 61 . Also see I. 63.

77. For Heracles being the greatest-grandson of Pelops see Paus. 5.13.2. For Theseus see Paus. 5. 10.8.
78. For references see: S. Woodford, "Cults of Heracles . . ." in Mitten (Ed), Studies Presented . . . ,
pp. 212-217. In addition to Woodford's references see: Plut. Them 1; Herod. 5.63. Cynosarges included a
gymnasium as well as a sanctuary of Heracles and was surrounded by a grave (see Livy 31.24.17), also see
Frazer Pausanias 1.19.3.
79. See I. Ringwood, "Local Festivals of Euboea," AJA 33 ( 1929), pp. 389-390.
80. See Birgitta Bergquist, Heracles on Thasos, pp. 58-60.
81. See Pindar 0/9.88; Pyth 8.79.
82. Seel. Ringwood, "Festivals of Rhodes," AJA 40 (1936), pp. 433.
83. See Farnell, Greek Hero Cults . . . , pp. 153-154. Woodford "The Cult of Heracles in Attica, m
Mitten (Ed.) Studies Presented . . . p. 214; I. Ringwood. AJA 33 (1929), p. 389. Also see Paus. 4.32. 1 , who
said that the statues of Heracles, Hermes and Theseus were in all training-ground wrestling schools. We learn
from an inscription that the boys and youths of Chios offered libation to Heracles and the Muses in connection
with some state-games (see C.I.G. 2214). Also see Farnell Greek Hero Cults ... p. 154, who states that "His
higher social function does not range beyond his protection of the Epheboi and his care for their physical
development." It becomes also clear from Athenaeus, who quoted Pamphilos, saying that the Athenian Ephe-
boi cut off their long hair and offered to Heracles a large cup which they have filled with wine. After a libation
from it they gave it to their companions to drink from (see Athen. 4940 . Sanctuaries of Heracles with gymnasia
attached or at least in the vicinity have been found in many parts of mainland Greece, (see H. Payne "Archaeol-
ogy in Greece 1933-4." JHS 54, 1934, p. 188. Also see Woodford "Cults of Heracles . . ."in Mitten Studies
. . . , p. 214). We learn from Pausanias (3.14.6) that at Sparta near the place called Dromos, the Epheboi
sacrificed to Heracles in his temple, on reaching manhood. Another temple of Heracles was recorded by the
same writer near Platanistai where the annual combat between two groups of Spartan youth took place (see
Paus. 3.14.8). The connection of Heracles with the Epheboi is clearly exposed on some vases where the hero
appears with the Epheboi engaging in characteristic athletic activities, (see Lillian Lawler "Orchesis Kallini-
kos," TAPA 79 (1948), p. 264. In reference to Heracles' association and interest in the Epheboi, athletics and
the palaestra, it has been emphasized that "this is the sole point at which the cult of Heracles touches the higher
civilization of Hellas" (see Farnell, Greek Hero Cults . . .pp. 153-154).
84. Pindar, Nem. 3.22.
85. Paus. 5.6.7.

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 Heracles at Olympia

penalty for the women detected entering the Olympic festival was death being
thrown from a precipitous mountain with high rocks called Typaion. The only
recorded case of transgression of this law throughout the history of the games
was that of Kallipateira or Pherenike as some people called her. The Hellano-
dicae saw that she was a woman but pardoned her out of respect for her father
and her brothers and her son, all of whom won victories at the Olympic
Games. The Hellanodicae then passed a decree that for the future all trainers
should appear in the Games naked. Pausanias also said:
Opposite the Greek arbiters is a white stone altar, and on this altar a woman sits
and watches the Olympic Games, the priestess of Demeter of the Ground, an
office awarded by Elis to different women at different times. Virgin girls of
course are not barred from watching.86

Demeter of the Ground, better known as Chamyne was a goddess of soil

and vegetation, and the fact that her priestess was allowed to watch the Olym-
pic Games, rather indicates a connection of the Goddess with some kind of
contests and festivals held in her honour.
The presence of the Great Goddess of Earth is attested at Olympia by both
literary and archaeological sources. Olympia was a sacred place, before the
coming of the Greeks, due to her oracle and position. The cult of the Great
Mother was in existence in Olympia as it becomes clear from two layers of
ashes containing primitive votive offerings that have been found there.87 The
material evidence clearly indicates the existence of a primitive religion which
definitely preceded that of the Olympian gods.88 The great Goddess at Olym-
pia bears the name Gaia (Earth) and her worship at Olympia goes back to very
early times as is evident from her name, which indicates an early stage of
religious thought and ritual.89 In fact Gaia had functions similar to the
4 'Mother Goddess" worshipped all over the Aegean world. She was goddess
of the wild life, forest, mountains, fertility and all living things in the na-
ture.90 Such a goddess 4 4 we have in Artemis, whose shrines and graves were
found throughout Elis."91 Artemis' connections with Olympia are not in
question. She was associated with the river Alpheios of Elis and received the
name Artemis Alpheia or Alpheionia.92 One of the six double altars that Hera-
cles founded at Olympia was dedicated to Artemis and Alpheios. She had, in
fact, eight altars in Olympia93 and every year a festival was celebrated in her
honour,94 not to mention that she received monthly sacrifices as well.95 The

86. Paus. 6.20.9. Trans, by Peter Levi (Great Britain, 1971).

87. Weniger, Klio 7, p. 145 in Gardiner, Olympia . . . , p. 123. For the existence of an oracle at Olym-
pia see: Pindar Ol 6.5; Paus. 5. 14. 10.
88. Gardiner, GASF, p. 38.
89. Ibid. Olympia . . . , p. 41 . Farnell, Cults of the Greek States . . . (I. p. 425) said that one of the cult
places of Artemis in prehistoric times was Elis.
90. For references regarding the "Mother Goddess and her functions," see Walter Burkert, Structure and
History in Greek Mythology and Ritual (Berkeley-Los Angeles-London, 1979), p. 187 n. 3.
91 . Farnell, Cults of the Greek States. III, p. 1 1 .
92. Pindar Nem. 1.1-6; Athen. 346b; Strabo 8.3.12; Paus. 6.22.8.
93. Paus. 5.14.4; 5. 14.5; 5. 14.6; 5. 14.7; 5.15.8.
94. Strabo 8.3. 12.
95. Paus. 5.14.5.

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Journal of Sport History, Vol. 1 1 , No. 3 (Winter, 1984)

evidence shows that Artemis was more popular in Olympia than in any other
place on the mainland Greece. It is almost impossible not to conclude that
Artemis was a primitive goddess of fertility and vegetation worshipped at
Olympia before and after the coming of the Greeks. That festivals, including
dances, and games, were held to honour her is a reasonable suggestion to
make, since the Goddess was worshipped in Minoan Crete and in Asia Minor
with games and dances. Another indication that games were held in honour of
this Great Goddess in mainland Greece is the fact that during the Olympic
Games the priestess of Demeter Chamy ne, who took over most of Artemis' s
functions as a fertility and vegetation goddess,96 was the only woman allowed
to watch the games.97 This is also an indication that the Olympian religion
which brought Zeus to power did not entirely abolish the pre-Hellenic cults
and festivals. It is true that some of these cults of "the immemorial heritage
ended by being incorporated into the Olympian religious system."98 It is pos-
sible that the Olympic Games had some roots in prehistoric fertility cults
which can be detected through not only the presence of the priestess of Deme-
ter Chamyne in the games but also by the very fact that the victorious athletes
were crowned with wreaths of wild olive. One, however, should always exer-
cise caution about the origins of the Olympic Games because the games held
in honour of the "Mother Goddess" were neither the only ones, nor the major
sporting activities in prehistoric Greece. There is little doubt that when the
Greeks invaded the mainland, they came in contact with this powerful god-
dess and adopted several aspects of her worship. As it has been said, "The
religious ceremonies and ritual practices of the pre-Hellenes made a deep and
lasting impression upon the minds of the Greeks."99 The vegetation elements
that we see in the later Pan-Hellenic games were due to the influences of the
traditions of the original inhabitants, who worshipped their Goddess of nature
with dances and games. What probably happened was a fusion and symbiosis
of Greek and Prehellenic athletic traditions whereby the conquerors succeeded
in imposing to a great extent their own athletic customs on the Prehellenes
while maintaining some of the earlier customs which, in fact, were not in
conflict with the Achaean tastes, beliefs and inclinations. Thus, the Greek
hero cults connected with competitive games predominated and were super-
imposed on the Prehellenes, but the existence of some elements of ancient
vegetation ritual in the later Greek athletic contests attests the influence on
these contests of an old vegetarian and fertility cult. Thus, the presence of the

96. In Arcadia, where was found her oldest cult, she was associated with Demeter and her daughter Perse-
phone (see Mircea Eliade, A History . . . , p. 279). See Herodotos 2.156 for the connection of Artemis with
Demeter. Also see Madeleine Jost "Les Grandes Déesses d'Arcadie," Revue des Etudes Anciennes 72 (1970),
p. 138, who said that Demeter and Persephone took over the functions of the Mother Goddess and her son. J.
Chadwick, the Mycenaean World , p. 85 said that Demeter was in origin a realization of the Earth Goddess.
Farnell Cults of The Greek States III, p. 28 said that ' 'the brightest of all Gaia's emanations is Demeter. ' '
97. See Paus. 6.20.9; 6.21 . 1 . Also see Frazer, Pausanias 4.21 . 1 .
98. Mircea Eliade, A History . . . , p. 251.
99. Gustave Glotz, The Aegean Civilization , Trans, by M. R. Dobie and E. M. Riley (London, 1925), p.
265.

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 Heracles at Olympia

priestess of Demeter Chamyne, the only woman allowed to watch the Olym-
pic Games is not surprising.
Pausanias's second statement that unmarried women "of course are not
barred from watching" has been challenged by both Gardiner and Harris.
Gardiner found Pausanias's statement "at least doubtful"100 because "we
never hear of any unmarried women being present at the festival and Olympia
can have afforded little or no accommodation for them."101 In Harris' opin-
ion, women generally were excluded from the games:
The statement in Pausanias, 4 4 they do not prevent unmarried women from
watching," is certainly one of the many corrupt passages in the text of that
author. It flatly contradicts Pausanias's own statement that any woman caught
at the games or even on the opposite side of the Alpheus on the relevant days
would be thrown down the cliffs of Mount Typaeum. Suetonius tells us that
when Nero established games on the Greek pattern in Rome he invited the ves-
tal virgins to be present because of the precedent of the priestess of Demeter at
Olympia. This gesture would have been meaningless if all virgins had been
admitted at Olympia. The probable explanation of the corruption in Pausanias
is that a scholiast's note referring to the girls' races had made its way into the '
text.102

We can conclude that with the exception of the priestess of Demeter Cha-
myne, women were banned from the men's Olympic Games. The girls, as
Pausanias said, had their own games, the Heraia, consisting of races for un-
married girls.103 Gardiner tried to explain the exclusion of women from the
Olympic Games and concluded that it was due "to some religious taboo rather
than to any sense of modesty or decorum."104 He believed such "a feeling
cannot have existed in these times"105 since women in Ionia attended the De-
lian Festival in honour of Apollo, and in Sparta they participated in athletic
exercises with boys.106 "They are excluded," he said, "from all military
rites, the presence of married women especially being prejudicial to warriors
on the warpath. . . . Their exclusion at Olympia was thus only natural if
Zeus was a god of war."107 That the presence of women in military rites was
considered detrimental "to warriors on the warpath" has been emphasized by
Farnell as well.108 With regard to Gardiner's second statement about Zeus
being a god war, we have to say that Zeus was not regarded at Olympia as
such. He came to Olympia as a peace-keeper and reconciliator, as it becomes
abundantly clear from literary and archaeological evidence. Since the pres-
ence of women in shrines of heroes or military rites was harmful to the warri-
ors' power, then one should look for a warrior or hero whose power was af-

100. Gardiner, G ASF, p. 47.

101. Ibid.
102. Harris, GAA, p. 183.
103. Paus. 5.16.1.
104. Gardiner, GASF, p. 47.
105. Ibid.
106. Ibid.
107. Ibid. , Olympia, p. 76.
108. Farnell, Greek Hero Cults . . . , p. 163. Also see: Lawler "Orchesis . . TAPA 79 (19
262.

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Journal of Sport History, Vol. 1 1 , No. 3 (Winter, 1984)

fected by the presence of women. We found Farnell's argument about the

exclusion of women from sanctuaries of heroes more convincing;
.... ; it lay rather in the old religious feeling that the presence of women
impairs the warriors' energy, and that it would therefore be detrimental in a
hero's shrine which served to consecrate heroic valour; for this reason as we
have noted, they were excluded from shrines of Agamemnon; and for this rea-
son, as we may believe, rather than for any myth, was Heracles called "Miso-
gynos" (' 4 woman hater") in Phokis, and his priest was pledged to severe chas-
tity during the tenure of his office. 109

Phokis was not the only place where women were excluded from Heracles'
shrine. An archaic inscription provides regulations for the cult of Heracles at
Miletos. One of these regulations was that the women are forbidden to enter
the sanctuary of Heracles.110 It is evident from the inscription that the exclu-
sion of women from this sanctuary was decided by an oracle of Apollo of
Didyme, the one who used to give consultations about the cults of the other
gods.111 At Erythrae, there was a very old cult of Heracles as Kallinikos from
whose shrines all women except of Thracian origin were debarred.112 It has
been pointed out that Thracian women being in their majority slaves, were
considered as chattels.113 Thracian women were rather admitted under the
benefit of a regulation that slaves generally were permitted to enter. It is possi-
ble that the privileges of the slaves might have arisen under the influence of
the tradition, predominant especially in Asia Minor, that Heracles himself
suffered slavery.114 This suggestion can be supported by a unique parallel in
the cults of Attica, namely a regulation concerning the nothoi or bastards in
Attic cults, that they should be engaged by some kind of religious initiation to
Heracles in his shrine at Kynosarges; for which there is no other interpretation
than that of being under the safeguard of a hero who was himself in some
sense a bastard by tradition.115 Another archaic inscription found in the island
of Thasos provides a few rules for the sacrifices to the shrines of Heracles. It
becomes clear from this inscription that women were forbidden to enter the
sanctuaries of the Thasian Heracles.116 According to the excavator the exclu-
sion of women from the shrines of Heracles at Thasos was a primitive tradi-

109. Farnell, Greek Hero Cults . . . , p. 163. This information comes from Plutarch (De Pyth. Or. 20)
who said that: "There is in Phocis a temple consecrated to Heracles the woman-hater, the chief priest of which
is forbidden by the law and custom of the place to have private familiarity with his wife during the year that he
officiates; for which reason they most commonly make choice of old men to perform that function. ' '
1 10. See J. Fontenrose, The Delphic Oracle, p. 419.
111. See BCH, 1923, p. 247.
112. Paus. 7.5. 5-8.
113. Lawler "Orchesis . . .", 7VUM 79, (1948), p. 262.
114. Farnell, Greek Hero Cults . . . , p. 164. Also see W. R. Halliday Plutarch's Greek Questi
215 who found Farnell's explanation convincing.
115. Ibid., pp. 164-5. According to tradition Heracles was the son of a god (Zeus) and a mortal w
(Alcmene).
116. Ch. Picard, "Un Rituel Archaique du Culte de l'Heracles Thasien," BCH Al , (1923), p. 243.

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 Heracles at Olympia

tion of the cult.117 An inscription from Cos makes it clear that women again
were excluded from the rites of Heracles Diomedonteios. 1 18
Greece was not the only place where women were forbidden to enter the
sanctuaries of Heracles. Aulus Gellius said:

In our early writings neither do Roman women swear by Heracles nor the men
by Castor. But why the women did not swear by Heracles is evident, since they
abstain from sacrificing to Heracles. . . . Nowhere, then is it possible to find
an instance, among good writers, either of a woman saying "by Heracles."119

Plutarch in his Roman Questions 120 said that in Italy women do not share in
nor taste what is offered on the greater altar of Heracles. The same point of
view was expressed by Sextus Aurelius Victor121 and Macrobius.122 Silius
Italicus informs us that those who are permitted and privileged to have access
to the inner shrine of Heracles at Gadeira, a city under Carthaginian influence
where a famous temple of Heracles existed, 4 'forbid the approach of
women."123
It becomes evident from both literary and material evidence that women in
Greece and Italy were not allowed to enter the sanctuaries of Heracles or par-
ticipate in sacrifices offered to him. The ancient saying that 4 'a woman does
not frequent the shrine of Heracles"124 was notorious and unquestioned. The
reason was that the presence of women, it was believed, could harm and di-
minish the warriors' or heroes' power, and Heracles being by tradition the
warrior par excellence and the hero of heroes, women had no place in his
rites.
It is reasonable to conclude that since the Olympic Games was a festival in
honour of Heracles, women were naturally excluded. This prohibition sur-
vived throughout the history of the Olympic Games, even after the coming of
Zeus, as did the presence of the priestess of Demeter Chamy ne in the Olympic
Games.

1 17. Ibid., p. 255. While women were excluded from the rites of Heracles, they played an important role
in other rituals. The Dionysiades in Sparta were maidens who ran a ritual-race in the public festival of Diony-
sos. The Thyiades were the sacred women who ascended the heights of mount Parnassos and "go mad in the
service of Apollo and Dionysos." (see Paus. 10.4.3; 10.32.7; Plutarch Quaest. Graec. 12. Also see Farnell
Cults ... V pp. 150-239 for an account of rituals in which the prominence of women is evident.) Detailed and
complete information available as to the ancient dedicators comes from the inventories of an Athenian shrine
(ca. 341-317 B.C.). There the women are slighlty in excess of the men (see CIA 2.835, 836, 839 in W. H. D.
Rouse Greek Votive Offerings, Cambridge, 1902, p. 206).
118. Ibid., p. 247, n. 6.
1 19. Aulus Gellius, Attic Nights, 1 1 .6.2, Trans, by J. C. Rolfe, London, 1927. On Heracles and the exclu-
sion of women also see: Propertius 4.9.
120. Plutarch, Roman Quest. 60.
121 . Sextus Aurelius Victor, De Origine Gentis Romanae, 6.6.
122. Macrobius Satur. 1.12.28.
123. Silius Italicus Punica 3.22-26. Trans, by J. D. Duff, London, 1934.
124. Paroemiographi Graeci. Ed. Leutsch and Scheid win 2.392 and 2. 154.

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