Political Enculturation

This paper examines two inscriptions used by Christian Marek (2003, pp. 66-67; 2015, pp. 308-309) to support his thesis that the coastal Paphlagonian koinon – known in epigraphical sources as “the Koinon of the Cities in Pontus” – was already established in the Julio-Claudian period, if not earlier.

Polybius (6.19.4) maintained that any Roman seeking public office could only do so after having served in ten military campaigns (the so-called decem stipendia). This is not surprising given the nearly constant state of warfare during much of the Republic, and the legitimacy the aristocracy drew from martial valor (Harris 1979; Rosenstein 2006, 2007). It is widely (though not universally) accepted that this rule was no longer in force by the Late Republic.

Membership in a professional association was an essential component in the social and economic advancement of sub-elite Roman families during the Principate. In addition to facilitating economic activities, professional associations offered to their members a meaningful way of engaging in the civic life of their community (Tran 2006: 61-88). Such memberships were also crucial for the way practitioners formulated their identity within the community (Joshel 1992: 62-91).

This paper presents the extant evidence for an ancient athletic diet and illustrates differences in consumption between athletes and their average Greek and Roman counterparts. It then examines the criticism of athletes by a wide range of ancient writers, who heap scorn on the athletic δίαιτα in favor of other, more useful pursuits. Many of these sources, some more explicitly than others, highlight the disparity in their diets in order to openly resent athletes for their luxurious way of life and exploit their overindulgence in defense of the intellectual.

For the Archaic period in Greece, a new model of performed social mobility has been put forth by Duplouy (2006: esp. 20-34; 2015). Yet, other scholars doubt this model’s applicability to such a pre-modern economy (Prost, Zurbach). Focusing on the example of athletics, this paper will argue that evidence supporting social advancement can be found in inscriptions which frame athletic contests as taking place between the entire “demos” or citizenry.

In 200 BCE, only recently victorious in the Second Punic Wars, the Roman people had rejected a call for war—the only time in the history of the Republic when the people had resisted the recommendation of the Senate regarding foreign policy. This remarkable rejection highlights the weight and importance of international relations in this period. To change the decision, the consul P. Sulpicius Galba invoked the memory of King Pyrrhus of Epirus and his invasion of Italy (Liv. 31.7.8-10).