In the essay on Theseus, Plutarch tells us that Theseus instituted the practice of giving the victors at the Olympics "palms". This brought to mind the midrash that explains the significance of a Lulav after Yom Kippur: That when two men walk into court and then walk out, you don't know which one was victorious until you see one holding a palm and can then say, "That one was victorious". So too on Yom Kippur etc. I am paraphrasing of course. But I found that to be an interesting piece of information that requires further study.
Lycurgus is quite the Marxist! Thomas More's Utopian island seems to have taken some ideas from him.
Posted by Yehupitz at June 23, 2005 12:31 PM | TrackBack