Part 64 (1/2)
I always enjoyed surprising hi, so it will be a sames,” I continued ”After all, you are not a charioteer, nor do you perform acrobatics--do you?” I hoped not The races were notoriously expensive to put on
”No,” he said ”But you must remember what birthday it will be for ood idea to co”
”Nonsense!” I said ”You should coainst your ownbesides train It would be unfair otherwise” And it would give so for it He was too proud just to walk out on the field with no practice As it was now, he stayed up far too late and slept half theaway, on a Perpetual holiday
”These will be Greek ga you Romans love so much”
”When with Greeks, do as the Greeks do,” he said ”It is generally much more civilized”
”Spoken like a convert,” I said ”Now if you would just embrace the Greek harhed ”Dionysus is is excess--that's what he's all about Drunken soberness, artistic license, freedom of the senses--” excess--that's what he's all about Drunken soberness, artistic license, freedom of the senses--”
”But Hercules has to keep himself fit in order to perform all his labors and turn into a God The two sides of you will have to take turns” ”They do,” he said ”They do Don't you know that yet?”
In truth, Antony had a deep and abiding interest in the theater; he loved plays, and took his patronage of the Dionysian guild of actors seriously There was that in hi, and even in Rome he had had actors and actresses as his friends in his retinue, ust In Alexandria he attended not only the theater, but lectures and demonstrations at the Museion, while I accos out of character, seeking to please the other
January fourteenth, Ludi et Natalicia nobilissimi Ludi et Natalicia nobilissimi A Antoni, the Games and Birthday Celebration of the Most noble Antony, was a still, blue-skied day I was surprised at how enthusiastic all the guests had been about the entertainrandstand and ogle the oiled male bodies, while theto strip off most of their clothes and couard--sought permission to enter the contests A chao also asked if he could compete But the other contestants were personal friends of ave it such curiosity value We knew these people in other capacities, and suddenly they would appear, flinging off their tunics, i famous athletes Perhaps they had always had a secret desire to do so the Games and Birthday Celebration of the Most noble Antony, was a still, blue-skied day I was surprised at how enthusiastic all the guests had been about the entertainrandstand and ogle the oiled male bodies, while theto strip off most of their clothes and couard--sought permission to enter the contests A chao also asked if he could compete But the other contestants were personal friends of ave it such curiosity value We knew these people in other capacities, and suddenly they would appear, flinging off their tunics, i famous athletes Perhaps they had always had a secret desire to do so
Since there was nothing official about this--it was just a private celebration--we decided that absolute nakedness was not required
”Unless you'd like to!” I remarked to Antony After all, he had appeared alo, when he'd held a lesser position
”No, I can restrain myself,” he said ”I wouldn't want to be the only one on the field like that, and I don't think the rest would do it”
He was right about that The only people who ever felt coyptians and--horrors!--barbarians avoided it As for the Jews, they found the whole idea repugnant and did not like even to pass by a gymnasion
There would be a pentathlon, the test of an all-round athlete--footrace, ju Then there would beand a race with armor, only for Antony and his soldiers
”Is Hercules ready?” I said, as we prepared to depart for the Gyuests would accompany us, drawn in all the litters and chariots I had been able to summon from the royal stables
”Yes,” he said, oddly subdued
”What is it?” Had he suddenly got cold feet? What a ti--I ae For every year he's lived, I've lived two I don't knohich is the advantage--my experience, or all those years he has yet tucked away in reserve”
”Now that's a Ro Antony, that I seldom see” This dark mood would not help his celebration I must chase it away ”Octavian is so sickly that he'll never reach the age of forty-two He's not strong like you; not only would he never have made it across the Alps, he can barely hed ”Now that's an exaggeration,sick--at crucial moments? He was sick at the battle of Philippi, and you did all the fighting He was so sick at Brundisium, on his way back to Rome, that he wasn't expected to live He was too sick to accompany Caesar to Spain He's always sick!”
”Yes, but, as you said, only at crucial moments Maybe it's his nerves that are sickly, not his body” He laughed ”Here, my little warrior Why don't you take ht; it will go with thefor you to dress like me” He unbuckled it and handed it to me
I took it, al sword ”Won't you use it in the exercises?”
”No I can never use it for games But still, I want it there You take it” He fitted its belt and hilt around”Coh now ”Take ht fearsome soldier!”
”I can kill if I have to,” I said slowly He should know that
”Noho has a dark hed ”Lead on to wherever you will take me, my Queen”
”Today it is to the Gy sinister about that”
The tru of the contests Almost fifty men were on the field, in various costumes Some wore only loincloths, others short, barbarian-style pants that stopped above their knees, some kilts, and others tunics All of them had been oiled in the special room for that purpose, the eliothesiuleahted
”I adore olive oil on athan sweat”
”I like both of the er books
Looking at them, I was struck by hoell proportioned Antony was for his heavy muscles He truly was one of those ular clothes e had made any inroads into him; he was blessed with a physique that could ress through the eastern provinces would have done in a frailer body
Participating in the gauard, elite soldiers; the Egyptian head charioteer and several archers; some Greek officials from the treasury; some of the company of Dionysiac artists; a tutor Antony had picked up in Syria, named Nicolaus of Damascus; my favorite Museion philosopher, Philostratos; and perhaps oras, a physician who headed a mummy-preservation society Oiled up, he looked like a y and dessicated But he trotted by surprisingly swiftly, chortling and calling, ”Watch me in the footrace! They call me the Natron Flash!+” He was met with a shower of flowers and cheers from the women
I noticed that Charuards who stayed near Antony, a tall, light-haired s--and kept the,” I reive him the victor's laurel--if he wins it,” I said
The contestants ar up in a series ofup and down, beating their chests, sprinting forward and then stopping abruptly Then they lined up at thetheir toes into the cleft in the stone, and were off at the cry Apite!--go!--for the six-hundred-foot race At first it looked like a shi+ny cluether, but soon they separated and one tall Egyptian took the lead, followed by a Greek and then, surprisingly, by Antony I had not expected that he could move so swiftly, as usually men with heavy s supplied the extra power that propelled hiths behind the rest, his kilt flapping wildly But he received the biggest ovation, and yelled as he passed, ”What do you expect for a sixty-two-year-old? Hermes?”
The former champion from the Ptolemaieia--as still only in his forties--finished fourth
Next carace The way a thrower rotated and moved his body was of utmost importance, and no one was allowed to turn and turn and wind hi the pose of a discus throere very popular, and as the men practiced, most of the wo all the statuesto compete in this event Not everyone would enter all contests; only poor Antony
Only about fifteentheir torsos far to the right, stretched out in a graceful arc and flung it far from theyptian head charioteer, and, once again third--by Antony His upper-body strength had reat cheer went up for all the contestants, in thisof all events
Next was the javelin throw, a favorite of the soldiers Of all the athletic events, this was the one most rooted in actual warfare But these javelins were hter type than the hter wood, the ones used for contests had leather thongs wound around the middle of the shaft to make theround, to measure distance Each ood ruler would wish it on his people But even the most vehement critic of ould be forced to adlorious, almost works of art, and the javelin throw is one such event Just watching aup to thehis other ar fly-- such beauty! The Gods forgive ain, oddly, it was Antony as third, and the other tinners werejuroup of men swarmed down to compete At last the lad Nicolaus of Damascus and the philosopher Philostratos ca up and down I heard hilected you, e yourself now!” There was s it to exist on the vapors of his y drawers sagged around his sunken waist, and his pale, thin legs protruded forlornly
The hts in each hand swinging to hurl the sand pit As expected, Philostratoshe went last, so he would not have the e all the others fly over his mark This was considered one of the most difficult of all events, because only a clean impression on the sand counted Anyone who fell backward or foras disqualified Hence tith Pipes were always played to help establish a rhyth tired now It could be seen in the way they gri still when it was not their turn; no
Antony did not look noticeably weary; I saw hihts in his ar theinning to show, in contrast to the others
Young Nicolaus did adood distance The sixty-five-year-old supply officer flew past hi Charhed Then a tall Gaul, one of Antony's guards, set the farthestline slowly,his feel of them for the last time He bent over as if to loosen all his y, and exploded forward, hurtled over the sand, and landed just behind theout, for the very force of his effort had been visible And he had landed perfectly, not losing his balance He slowly rose to his feet and stepped away from the sand
”He's truly remarkable!” said Charmian, as if she had only now noticed Perhaps she had
I shi+fted onby my side clanked Odd that he had wanted th to him The helh in itself, as far as history was concerned