Thetis
Mannheimer Beiträge zur klassischen Archäologie und Geschichte Griechenlands und Zyperns
Herausgegeben von Reinhard Stupperich und Heinz A. Richter
Band 8 (2001) ISBN 978-3-941336-38-4
Antike
- Zur Tradition und zur Fertigung ‘homerischer’ Pithoi in Süd-Messenien/Peloponnes
- Jens Godber Hansen
In Messenia the tradition of producing enormous pithoi has been preserved until the present. The
author describes the production process step by step documenting by a series of detailed photographs.
By comparing homeric references to pithoi and citing modern oral tradition about methods and conditions
of their production he shows the long and conservative way of tradition.
- Das Bild des Orpheus in der antiken Kunst
- Ingeborg Huber
Representations of Orpheus, the mythical Musician, appear on numerous ancient objects of art,
such as vase-paintings, sculptures, mosaics, bronce mirrors and gems. All these representations
refer to situations of his life and his death, known from ancient literature. It is, however,
astonishing that some of the topics are favoured, while others are almost neglected. Greek artists
favoured Orpheus enchanting the Thracian men by his music, and dying, being torn to pieces by the
women of Thrace. In rare cases we find Orpheus’s head and lyre still singing and prophesying after
his death. Orpheus accompanying the Argonauts, or Orpheus with the muses and Orpheus together with
his wife Eurydice seem to have been of less interest. Most famous is a series of vases from Italy,
showing Orpheus trying to enchant the underworld deities. Orpheus playing the lyre and being
surrounded by beasts, wild and tame, was a favourite subject of Roman artists, mainly as mosaics.
This motif was also popular in early Christian art. In all these different presentations we find
the magic of Orpheus’s singing and playing. First and foremost he is a musician.
- Der Thyrsos und seine pflanzliche Substanz
- Hermann Schauber
In twelve dictionaries and encyclopaedias the pine cone is believed to be the handle of the
Thyrsos. Analyzing more than 600 vases from Attica and southern Italy we must come to the conclusion
that this erroneous. Indeed, there is no pine cone on a Thyrsos in any museum between Naples and
Berlin. The article explains how the misinterpretation came into being.
- Thysthla, Thyrsoi und Narthekophoroi. Anmerkungen zur Geschichte des dionysischen Kultstabes
- Ingrid Krauskopf
Most probably the Thisthla, mentioned by Homer as attributes of the Tithenai acompanying young
Dionysos, were wands of the Dionysian cult like the Thyrsoi recorded much later. But one cannot
infer the appearance of Thsthla from the Thyrsoi. Among the oldest reproductions of Thyrsoi on
Attic vases of the late 6th century B.C. there are peculiar forms which lead us to the conclusion
that the Thyrsos formed out of Narthex stalks and ivy twigs was not yet common and generally known.
A little later, however, it was common usage, since it could be produced and handled easily
(s. Schauber). But elsewhere e.g. in the art of the Western Greeks and in Roman provinces we still
encounter different forms, but there was never a model using a pine cones.
- Zyprische und etruskische Terrakotta-Großplastik im Reiss-Museum der Stadt Mannheim
- Federico Utili
Two ancient terracotta heads of unknown provenience were saved from the war debris of the museum
at Mannheim and are identified as fragments of a Cypriot votive statue and of an Etruscan acroterion
figure of late archaic times.
- Der Eid von Plataeae und der frühklassische Tempelbau
- Natascha Kreutz
This article is about the Oath of Plataia, which the allied, anti-Persian Greeks have sworn before
starting the battle of Plataia in 479 BC. This oath is noted, in a so to speak ‘updated’ copy, on a
4th-century stele from the sanctuary of Ares in Acharnai (Q 3). Apart from this epigraphic record,
two little different literary versions of the 4th century BC (Q 1, Q 2) are preserving the same oath;
they are extended by the vow, not to rebuild the temples destroyed by the Persians, but to leave them
in ruins for remembering the impiety of the barbarians. The archaeological results are making the
consequences of this vow evident: there is a gap of circa 30 years in reconstructing the burnt
sanctuaries. This special part of the Oath of Plataia has probably been initiated by Themistokles,
who was interested in building new city walls and a powerful fleet for Athens as fast as possible and
with all material and manpower that was available.
- The Acropolis of Athens social meaning and experiential values of a monumental ensemble
- Alexander Papageorgiou-Venetas
As the monumental heritage on the Athenian acropolis established in the time of Pericles is endangerd today
by pollution and other factors, several different restrictive proposals have been made to cope with
this situation in the future. The author, however, pleads for maintaining the possibility of direct
contact with the historical monuments.
- Koroibos, ein Architekt des Perikles, und der Grabbezirk XVIII seiner Familie im Kerameikos
- Martha Weber
The article is focused on the questions, what do we know about the family in the peribolos XVIII in
the Kerameikos represented by the family stele and three individual tomb-stones, and what has been
the original enclosure. On the basis of informations given by inscriptions and Plutarch and by other
stelai there are proposed in some detail theses about the personal history of the members of the
important family, first represented by Koroibos of Melite, a famous architect of Pericles.
- Principles and Methology in the political thought of Thucydides
- Sofia Stamouli
Thucydides uses politics in order to write his History because he wishes his work to remain an
eternal masterpiece, Being faithful to his austere principles of historical truth, he is mathematical
ly objective as far as the reasons and causes of the war between Athens and Sparta are concerned.
That's why he uses arguments which show that his historical work is a logical-philosophic system. In
his methology tragic elements from the drama appear and at the same time the factors "luck" and
"prediction" can be found because he is influenced by Atomic Philosophers and Hippocrates. However,
Gorgiia schemata and disputes influenced by Sophistes justify the density in expression and style.
The sophistic arguments with which political life is estimated according to a) human, b) rational,
c) benefit, prove that Thucydides as political analyst is a realist. Taken into account that the
main theme of his work is war he takes advantage of the art of implications as well as axiom and
theorem which can be found in Plato's and Aristotle's work. Moreover he uses the technique of
indirect speech in his demigories which are an excellent sample of rhetoric and communicative speech
and which set the basis of Political science and History.
- Travel between Cyprus and Cyrenaica in Graeco-Roman Times
- G. R. H. Wright
Cyprus and Cyrenaica showed much ancient history, yet each maintained its own distinctive character.
In this way it is interesting to document instances of individuals who passed from one land to the
other. The possible history of such travels ranges from late Bronze Age times to Late Antiquity, but
by far the best attested period is the 3rd-1st century B.C. when both lands constituted major
provinces of the Ptolemaic Empire. It is also notable that there is much more evidence for those
with a Cyrenaican background travelling to Cyprus than vice-versa. Although the total evidence is
restricted, it serves to add its comment to some general historiscal issues: e.g. Greek “Medising”;
Ptolemaic ethnic policy; the Jewish Revolt; and the eventual divergence in destiny of the two
regions.
- Anders und doch wesensgleich. Überlegungen zur griechischen Baukunst zweier Zeiten
- Carl Wefelmeier<
In the context of the Greek architecture the buildings of the Middle Ages (of Byzantine times) show
at first sight no relation to those of the classical antiquity but rather to the Roman heritage. But
when you take a closer look there is a whole series of correspondences: autonomous laws of single
buildings (no subordination), the parts of the building show an aesthetic autonomy in an harmonic
totality, the relations of measures on an arithmetic or geometric basis, fusion of centralising and
direction - giving - tendencies, clearness of structure, formation on all sides (no dominating
façades). These characteristics do not occur in Roman and occidental architecture though there are
a few exceptions. But as they refer to the traits of the Greek existence and forming they cannot but
be genuinely Greek and still have an effect on modern times. Their restraint in the hellenistic
period is just a temporary deviation as a result of new actualities.
Mittelalter
- „So war der Eifer dieses Mannes der Eifer eines Apostels“ - Leben und Tod Kaiser Friedrichs I.
Barbarossa im Geschichtswerk des byzantinischen Historikers Niketas Choniates (ca. 1155-1217)
- Klaus-Peter Todt
Since ca. 1160 the tradional friendship between the Byzantine and tbe Medieval German Empire changed
and Emperors Manuel I Comnenus I (1143-1190) and Frederick I Barbarossa (1152-1190) became rivals in
a struggle concerning the overlordship over Italy and Hungary. During tbe Third Crusade (1189/1190)
Barbarossa‘s forces marched through tbe Byzantine Empire to go to Palestine, but Emperor Isaac II
Angelus (1185-1195) suspected, that Barbarossa intended to conquer Constantinople and attacked him.
After the peace of Adrianople (February 1190) the Germans passed through Asia Minor and won a lot of
victories over the Turks. Nicetas Choniates reports in his chronike diegesis on the Third Crusades
and the death of Barbarossa (10th June 1190), glorifying his crusading zeal in a very extraordinary
manner. Nicetas’ praise of Barbarossa is interpreted in the context of his severe critic of tbe
Byzantine Emperors of bis lifetime and of the historian‘s descent from tbe provincial town of Chonai,
which had to suffer from Turkish incursions and profited from Barbarossa‘s victorious fights against
the Turks.
- The last centuries of Byzantium and the birth of Modern Hellenism
- Dimitrios Letsios
The paper deals with the formation of the Modern Greek national identity and its background. Two
periods are of particular interest, the last centuries of Byzantium and the years immediately before
and after the establishment of the Greek national state in the first decades of the nineteenth century.
The formation of a national identity is relative new and its beginning is traced in Europe in the last
years of the eighteenth century. In the next centuries its significance advanced and the discussion is
not without actual impact, especially for the Balkan region. The existence of a national identity for
the population of Byzantium has been put often in question. For the Byzantine State the reliance upon
the Hellenie past is more evident at the time close to the fourth Crusade and the occupation of
Constantinople by the Crusaders. The elements developed during this period and their roots in the past
are discussed on the basis of the sources material. The relevant literature is consulted as well.
During the time of the Enlightenment, the European movement resulted to a fruitful discussion among
the Greek intellectuals and scholars concerning the Hellenic past. Byzantium acquired in this evolution
its due place as the medieval past of Hellenism, establishing at that time its Modern Greek national
state. The nodes that link the Greeks to their ancient and medieval past are presented in a manner that
elucidates the crucial elements determining this development through the centuries of the Greek
history.
Neuzeit
- Erasmus und das Studium des Griechischen
- Robert Stupperich
Though his teacher was one of the first to introduce Greek into school Erasmus did not learn much Greek
until he came to Paris. Decisive instigations for his eager and intensive study of Greek came from the
friends he made on his first visit to England, from the methodolocial theories of the early humanist
Lorenzo Valla, and from his own work on the Greek text of the bible and on the church fathers, mainly
Hieronymus. This was a major reason for his journey to Italy, where he studied with the major Greek
scholars of the time and worked in the Greek circle of the Venitian editor Aldus Manitius. In his
proposals for good education Erasmus suggested to learn Latin and Greek early and even at the same
time. His suggestion, based on theories of Johannis Laskaris, to pronounce the vowels in Ancient Greek
differently from modern Greek, to help understanding, did not succeed until the 19th century, when it
was used to justify ‘national’ pronunciation.
- Hellas rediviva. Fiktion und Realität bei der Wiederentdeckung der griechischen Welt
- Christoph Helm
This summary of the life and work of the 19th century archaeologist Ludwig Ross, who led the
excavations on the acropolis of Athens after the liberation and was the first professor of
archaeology in the new university of Athens and later on at Halle/Saale, was offered as an address
to the annual meeting of the German Archaeologists Association at Halle. Helm summarizes Ross’
teaching, e.g. his stress on the importance of the ancient Orient, and shows what we can learn from
it for today’s university teaching.
- Scipio and Ludwig Uhland
- Christiane Reitz
Silius’ Italicus Punica didn’t play an important role in the classical tradition. One of the few
literary reflections is Ludwig Uhland’s translation of an episode which shows young Scipio on the
crossroad between Virtus and Voluptas. Uhland, though his education provided him with a deep insight
into classical thought, has in his later work moved in a different direction. The essay analyses his
translation and tries to find explanations for his later development.
- The Legality of the Consular Excavations in Ottoman Cyprus
- G. R. H. Wright
Recently there has been much discussion of the propriety of excavations carried out in Cyprus during
the middle of the 19th century by consular officials (notably Hamilton Lang and General Cesnola).
However this discussion has been motivated by current ideologies, and virtually no attention has
been given to the legal status of these activities according to Ottoman Law then prevailing. An
attempt is made here to outline the provisions and operation of Ottoman Law in its several branches
as they affect this issue. The reasonable conclusion is that according to such provisions the
consular antiquities excavations were not illegal.
- Zur Geschichte des Deutsch-Griechischen Vereins Philadelphia in Athen
- Gustav Auernheimer
The German-Greek Club "Philadelphia" in Athens is probably the oldest Club of Greece. It was
established 1837 by the Bavarians who came to Greece in the train of King Otto. Its name was
"Deutsche Gesellschaft Philadelphia"
and the purpose to achieve was the cultivation of social life. Although the Club, during its history,
had to cease his activities several times above all in connection with the two world wars, it was'not
in any time dissolved. More than 100 years was "Philadelphia" a German men's Club, that means only
Germans of male sex could become a full member. Today Germans and Greeks, men and women, having equal
rights, work together, on grounds of a modern
statute. This statute lays down as purpose of the Club to promote the friendly contacts of the members
and to deepen the german-greek relations. The main activity of the Club consists in cultural meetings,
which take place, on an average, once every month. It exists a bureau of the Club for the accomplishment
of organizational and administrative tasks, which is in the district of Amaroussi.
- Bildende Kunst in den Gedichten von Konstantin Kavafis
- Jörg Schäfer
Several poems dealing with or mentioning works of art are selected from the work of the Kavafis.
The Greek originals and sensitive German translations are juxtaposed, the poem and the function of
sculpture or painting in the poem are commented on.
- The Tourist Flow to Athens and its Implications upon the Monumental Heritage of the City
- Alexander Papageorgiou-Venetas
The visit to Greece, for a long time a place of nostalgic reference for the European intelligentsia
in archaelogical finds, has become progressively our days a fashionable experience: summer vacations
and international conferences are attracting more and more visitors to the country. Under these
auspices this paper undertakes a critical retroperspective of the modalities and essence of the
“Greek adventure” during the 19th and 20th century and reviews the impact of this growing mass
assault on world heritage of the classical monuments.”
- Griechenlands Literatur zwischen Ephemerem und Beständigem. Gedanken zum Bleibenden im Werk von Stratis Myrivilis
- Pavlos Tzermias
To a great extent the article is based on the author‘s book: Die neugriechische Literatur, Homers
Erbe als Bürde und Chance (The Modern Greek Literature, Homer‘s heritage as a burden and a chance),
published in Tübingen in 2001. In his article the author emphasizes the discrepancy between the
ephemeral and the consistent observed in the efforts to promote the reception of modern Greek
literature abroad. Especially these days where by the trend of notorious globalization Homo
culturalis is threatened by Homo oeconmicus the danger of a superficial spreading of the ephemeral
is great. As an instructive example the author refers to the parts of the work of Stratis Myrivilis
(1 892[?]- 1969) which have proved consistent. Myrivilis’ career had also dark sides in some
periods. But his “trilogy of war” belongs to the most beautiful examples of modern Greek literature.
The author goes especially into the novel “I Panajia i gorgona” (“The Mermaid Madonna”).
- Greek Jewry and Nazi Germany: the Holocaust and its Antecendents
- Hagen Fleischer
The Jewish community in Greece had remarkably close relations with Germany from the late 19th century
until 1933, when the Nazis assumed power and established what they called the Third Reich. Nazi
representatives in Greece were confused about what they considered wrong affiliations because the
liberal camp - headed by their old foe Venizelos - harbored considerable anti-Semitic sentiment while
Berlin's traditional allies – Tsaldaris's Popular Party and, after 1936, Ioannis Metaxas - supposedly
courted the Jewish community. In the meantime, Greek Jews tried to oppose the Nazi regime and, as
well as they could, given the situation in Greece, help their suppressed brethren in Germany and in
particular those who had fled from there. The second part of the article discusses the German
occupation of Greece and German attempts to impose the Final Solution as thoroughly as possible.
Nonetheless, there were striking regional differences in the survival percentages of Greek Jewry. In
general, the mostly vague statistical data have been presented as accurately as possible.
- Der griechische Bürgerkrieg, seine Nachwirkungen und die Rolle der DDR
- Andreas Stergiou
This article discusses the support of the SED to the Greek commnunist guerrillas during the Greek
civil war of 1946-1949 and the case of the Greek "Paidomazoma" (the mass evacuation of Greek children
to socialist countries and their education with Greek „national“ values in their host countries) in
post-world war in East Germany. Although the issue has been useful for propaganda from both sides
because of its humanitarian dimension, the autor tried to find out what really happened dyring and
after this operation. In opposition to the opinion advocated and until now advocating by the Greek
rights he concludes that the cultivation of a socialistically defined national identity has been a
far from de-hellenizing experience. This conclusion is strengthed by the efforts of the Greek
emigrants after the Civil War to get back its Greek Nationality. This article also deals with the
attempt of the comnunist and socialist parties in Greece (KKE, PASOK), to istrumentalise this issue
to win the emigrants as voters.
- Georg Seferis: Die Katzen des Sankt Nikolaus. Resignation oder Ernüchterung eines Dichters?
- Alexander Papageorgiou-Venetas
The author offers a German translation of Seferis’ poem on the liberation of the ‘cap of the cats’
on Cyprus from poisonous snakes by cats nourished by the monks of Ag. Nikolaos, and a short
interpretation in figurative sense.
- Toward Cooperation in Post-Cold War Southeastern Europe?
- Constantine P. Danopoulos
This article attempts to summarize and evaluate the environmental policy of the modern Albanian
state. It begins with a brief historical survey of the country’s history since independence (early
1910s). The paper is then divided in to four parts. Part one deals with the pre-communist period
during which the country suffered considerable environmental degregation. Political instability,
economic backwardness, and total lack of environmental awareness were main culprits. The second part
analyzes the communist period (1945-1991). The dictatorial and xenophobic regime of Enver Hoxha and
his successor unleashed a crush industrialization program. Self reliance and total neglect
contributed to substantial environmental damage. Deforestation, air and water pollution, soil
conamination, and acid ram became widerspread. The building of numerous bunkers added to the problem.
The next section deals with the record of democratically elected governments that succceded the
communists in 1991. Recent governments have introduced some environmental legislation but lack
resources and public support to implement such policies. The concluding part assesses Albanian’s
overall environmental record and concludes that a host of objective and subjective factors give
little hope that the country’s environment will see much improvement in the near future.
- The Nicosia Master Plan
- Lellos Demetriades
In the following article the Mayor of Nicosia Mr. Lellos Demetriades presents his personal Vision
for his city, which continues to be the last divided capital in the world. He recounts his first
attempts to establish communication with the “other half” ofthe citizens of Nicosia who live behind
the Buffer Zone. He describes how, along with Mr. Mustafa Akinci the representative of the Turkish
Cypriot community, they took the initiative and succeeded in promoting bi-communal cooperation first
for a joint sewerage system and later for a joint Master Plan for the city’s urban development. He
also describes the constraints that had to be overcome in order to establish a permanent
collaboration that promotes a common future for all the inhabitants of the city of Nicosia.
- Eine Rundreise durch Ägäis-Makedonien
- Alexander Jossifidis
During summer and autum 2000 the author organized a journey leading through the Greek part of
Macedonia. The aim was to get an idea of the actual differences between Athens and Skopie conceming
the Siavophone population in that region - exactiy speaking: is there a suppressed Slavomacedonian
minority or not? A questionaire was used to colleet and summarize the received information. The
items deait with dialect knowledge as weil as personal aftitude referring to the FYROM and were
answered by about 600 inhabitants.
The work is a part of a doctoral thesis with the title Conflictpotentialfocused on the history of the
Slavophone population in Northern Greece. This short description is rather a momentarily glance at the
sociopolitical situation in Maeedonia than a scientific analysis which will be done by the whole thesis.
- Ankara, Zypern und die EU
- Heinz A. Richter
In this paper some basic parameters of Turkish internal and foreign policy are analysed, e.g.
treatment of minorities, respect shown towards international institutions, application of force in
foreign policy, and geostrategic considerations. The article then describes how these are applied
in Ankara's policy towards Cyprus in the context of the bi-lateral Turkish-Greek and Turkish-EU
relations. It is shown that the policy of dividing the island (taksim) is a long term policy which
began in the 1950s and reached a negative climax in 1974. Since then Ankara and its henchmen in the
north of Cyprus have been steering a course of intransigence which ironically enough recently
blocked Ankara's road to the EU. On the other hand Ankara still believes that with the help of the
US Turkey will be accepted by the EU without prior fundamental reforms.
- Der schwierige Annährungsprozeß zwischen Athen und Ankara
- Jürgen Reuter
In the beginning of 1999, when it came to light that the PKK leader Öcalan was being provided shelter
at the Greek Embassy in Nairobi, the Greek-Turkish relationship sank to a record low. Turkey
threatened to bring Greece to trial at an international level, charging her on two counts: first,
that she was acting as a “terrorist state” and second, that she was refusing to declare that she is
not a supporter of the PKK. The Öcalan-affair led to a crisis in the Greek government and hence to
the resignation of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Pangalos. As a result, Georgios A. Papandreou,
the former deputy foreign minister, became head of the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs and with him
came a noticeable change in the Greek foreign policy towards Turkey. Not only was he able to build on
his already good relationship with his Turkish counterpart Ismail Cem, but also he became inspired by
the experience of fruitful co-operation between Greece and Turkey established during the
Kosovo-crisis in the Spring 1999. In the future, it would be wrong if the EU were to remain in a
passive role, to merely judge, at some future point, Turkey’s observance of the Copenhagen Criteria.
Supportive action by the EU must be energized. Embedded in this is the rapprochement between Greece
and Turkey. Adequate EU-programmes addressing internal policy and law must assist Turkey in finding
its way to meet the Copenhagen Criteria. The future has to show whether Ankara will be able and
willing to move further in the direction, mentioned above. It cannot be judged, yet, whether it is
the European-modernists who really hold the power in their hands.
Dokumentation
- American and British NATO-Plans for Cyprus, 1959–1964
- Claude Nicolet
Against the background of wide-spread accusations towards Britain and America regarding the fate of
Cyprus after the 1950s, this article aims at refuting two popular claims about NATO’s role on the
island. They are that the U.S. and Britain wanted to have Cyprus become NATO territory in 1960 and
that they wanted to deploy a NATO peacekeeping force to Cyprus in early 1964, but that they did not
succeed with either plan owing to Archbishop Makarios’ resistance. This article argues that, while
both attempts were indeed discussed among British and American policymakers, it was primarily these
countries and some of their allies’ own reservations, rather than Makarios’ resistance, that made the
proposals stillborn.