Athletic Nudity among the Greeks and Etruscans : The Evidence of the Perizoma Vases - article ; n°1 ; vol.172, pg 395-407

Myles Mcdonnel

Description

Publications de l'École française de Rome - Année 1993 - Volume 172 - Numéro 1 - Pages 395-407
The implausible assumption of a uniform Etruscan reception of Greek culture has ironically led to confusion over when the Greeks themselves began to practice athletic nudity. Scholars who date the introduction of Greek athletic nudity to the early fifth century (pace Thucydides, I 6.5 and Plato, R V 452c) unconvincingly explain away hundreds of representations of nude athletes in seventh and sixth century Greek art as expressions of idealization or heroic nudity, or as reflections of a fashion which came and went, and came again. Invariably the perizoma vases are invoked to prove that Greeks did not practice athletic nudity in the late sixth century. Evidence that these vases were designed for an Etruscan market and Etruscan tastes is rejected because athletic nudity occurs in sixth century Etruscan art. But athletes wearing loincloths appear on only eleven of the vases, all of which carry other signs of being designed for an Etruscan clientele. The painting in of loincloths on a small number of Attic vases indicates that nudity was objectionable to some Etruscan. The presence of nudity in tomb paintings and elsewhere shows only that other Etruscans accepted it. There is some evidence that Etruscan attitudes to Greek nudity were determined by class. Similar diverse reactions to athletic nudity also occurred among the Jews and Romans.
13 pages

Informations

• Publié par: PUBLICATIONS_DE_L-ECOLE_FRANCAISE_DE_ROME0
• Publié le: 01 janvier 1993
• Nombre de lectures: 120
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

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