Rosetta: Papers of the Institute of Archaeology and Antiquity, Issue 6, Spring (2009), 1-25
Abstract
This article examines the biographical evidence for a plausible connection between the philosopher Pythagoras and Sparta. It takes into consideration the sources that we have on the subject as well as their probable motivations. A variety of sources are employed to this end and they range from philosophical treatises to archaeological artefacts. It also considers other potential reasons as to why Pythagoras or Pythagorean philosophers might be interested in Sparta. These include, but are not limited to, issues of Spartan social organisation, (near) sexual equality and music.
Pythagoras is a figure who is shrouded in obscurity and whose life is typically retold in mythic terms. Burkert begins his treatise on this enigmatic philosopher writing that ‘Over the origins of Greek philosophy and science lies the shadow of a great traditional name’, that is: Pythagoras of Samos (c. 569 – c. 475 BCE). Significantly, his very name means something like ‘mouthpiece of Delphi’. This fact by itself would have aroused the interest of the Spartans (who were very keen on the Oracle at Delphi, even fighting a series of ‘sacred wars’ over the control of it) and, so the accounts tell us, this interest was reciprocated. Accounts report that Pythagoras made one or more visits there and to Krete in order to study their laws before journeying to southern Italy, where he settled in Kroton around 530 BCE, and later in the Lakonian colony of Taras.
Kenneth Royce Moore (University of St. Andrews)
Rosetta: Papers of the Institute of Archaeology and Antiquity, Issue 6, Spring (2009), 1-25
Abstract
This article examines the biographical evidence for a plausible connection between the philosopher Pythagoras and Sparta. It takes into consideration the sources that we have on the subject as well as their probable motivations. A variety of sources are employed to this end and they range from philosophical treatises to archaeological artefacts. It also considers other potential reasons as to why Pythagoras or Pythagorean philosophers might be interested in Sparta. These include, but are not limited to, issues of Spartan social organisation, (near) sexual equality and music.
Pythagoras is a figure who is shrouded in obscurity and whose life is typically retold in mythic terms. Burkert begins his treatise on this enigmatic philosopher writing that ‘Over the origins of Greek philosophy and science lies the shadow of a great traditional name’, that is: Pythagoras of Samos (c. 569 – c. 475 BCE). Significantly, his very name means something like ‘mouthpiece of Delphi’. This fact by itself would have aroused the interest of the Spartans (who were very keen on the Oracle at Delphi, even fighting a series of ‘sacred wars’ over the control of it) and, so the accounts tell us, this interest was reciprocated. Accounts report that Pythagoras made one or more visits there and to Krete in order to study their laws before journeying to southern Italy, where he settled in Kroton around 530 BCE, and later in the Lakonian colony of Taras.
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