Dancing at the Cotyora Symposion in Xenophon’s Anabasis

Abstract

This paper presents the dances that are mentioned in Xenophon’s work Anabasis. These dances were performed by men, who were soldiers in the Greek army and had various ethnic origins, and a girl, after a banquet held at Cotyora, on the territory of Paphlagonia. Greek and Paphlagonian ambassadors ate and enjoyed themselves together in this banquet, listening to songs and music and watching the dance performances. The author describes different dances accompanied by aulos music: war dances with weapons (e.g. Pyrrhic), agricultural mimetic dances and an oriental one. We aim to identify and classify the dances combining the text with similar representations in the contemporary Classical art, focusing on Xenophon’s times (430/25 - 354 BCE). Selected examples are shown, especially from vase-paintings and figurines, which represent these dances performed at symposia. Another purpose of this paper is to show and emphasize the peaceful coexistence of people through common banquets, songs and dances and common entertainment and the peaceful resolution of problems.

Keywords

• symposion
• ancient Greek dances
• war dances
• pyrrhic, oklasma,
• ancient Greek music
• Anabasis

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