Heroon at Nemea

Heroon at Nemea
	Location of Nemea in Greece
Location	Nemea, Greece
Coordinates	37°49′17″N22°39′40″E / 37.821330°N 22.660998°E Coordinates: 37°49′17″N22°39′40″E / 37.821330°N 22.660998°E
Length	100 metres (330 ft)
Width	40 metres (130 ft)

Last updated November 27, 2022

The Heroon at Nemea is a part of the larger Panhellenic sanctuary of Zeus in the North-West Argolid. A small feature of the sanctuary as a whole, the heroon is a large mound of earth situated on the west side of the Nemea river. This site is dedicated to the mythological hero Opheltes, an infant whose death was foretold by the seer Amphiaraus. Though little remains of the activities of the heroon, it is suspected that the athletic games which took place there were the predecessor of the Nemean Games, though this does contrast with the idea that Herakles created the games.^[1] Evidence of cult activities and the practicing of magic at the heroon have also been found.^[2]

The Heroon

The heroon itself is a mound of earth, 100 metres (330 ft) long and 40 metres (130 ft) at its widest. The heroon was likely at the height of its use from the 6th century BCE to the 4th century BCE, but little remains from its earliest stages. Later construction of a five-sided peribolos wall and a general flattening of the mound have also altered the structure.

The immediate surroundings of the heroon include an unlined well, a three-part reservoir, evidence of a hippodrome, remains of an athletic track, and the starting line of the early stadium. Many of these structures may have been built for use during the athletic events held in honor of the hero Opheltes.^[3]

The first Nemean Games were held in 573 BCE and the heroon was constructed around the same time, however sources for the myth of Opheltes are traceable only to the early 5th century BCE.^[4] Therefore, it is likely the heroon predates the hero that it commemorates. In the mid third century BCE, when the games were relocated to Argos the shrine fell out of use.^[2]

The Cult of Opheltes

According to legend, Opheltes was the infant son of King Lycurus and his wife Eurydice of Nemea. His nurse was Hypsipyle, the former queen of the island of Lemnos who had been taken as a slave. Lycurus and Eurydice had been told by the seer Amphiaraus that their son could not be put down on the ground until he had learned to walk or else he would be killed, and the couple passed this directive onto the nurse. However, when the Seven against Thebes, on their way from Argos to Thebes, stopped at Nemea, they asked Hypsipyle to show them to water. Obliging, Hypsipyle set down Opheltes in a bed of wild celery within a sacred space and led the men away. In her absence, a snake – the protector of the space – strangled the child.^[5]

Opheltes posthumously received the name Archemorus which combines the words archí meaning "old" and morós, or "fate, destruction, or death" to form the epithet “forerunner of death”^[1] or "beginning of doom".^[5] Additionally, funeral celebrations and athletic events – perhaps the Neman Games – were arranged by the Seven in the late baby's honor and he was elevated to the status of hero. Crowns of wild celery were given to the victors at the Nemean Games, supposedly in Ophletes’ honor, and the celery stood as a symbol of sadness for the child.^[1]

Artifacts recovered

Not much pottery has been excavated from the heroon save several examples of whole vessels deliberately arranged and buried.^[3] However, a series of tablets engraved with what appear to be erotic curses have been found at the site. These tablets, seven in total and four with discernible curses written on them, serve as an acknowledgement of the cult activities that took place at the heroon; since Opheltes died a violent death at a very young age his shrine is desirable place for Greeks to practice magic, through the typical hero shrine wouldn't be.^[2]

The tablets were found scattered across the heroon but each was made in the same fashion, by folding and nailing shut a sheet of lead with an inscription on its surface. The binding spells written on these tablets call for an individual to be "turn[ed] away" from their lover for the benefit of the person creating the curse.^[2] The person creating the tablet invokes different parts of their enemy's body and spirit to establish walls between them and their lover through as many facets as possible.

Since the writing on the tablets is done in cursive and features letters which are not documented until the 4th century BCE or later, it is likely that the curse tablets were left at the heroon after the site fell out of use.^[2] The differing styles of handwriting on the tablets indicates that each was deposited by a different individual.

Related Research Articles

In Greek mythology, Amphiaraus or Amphiaraos was the son of Oicles, a seer, and one of the leaders of the Seven against Thebes. Amphiaraus at first refused to go with Adrastus on this expedition against Thebes as he foresaw the death of everyone who joined the expedition. His wife, Eriphyle, eventually compelled him to go.

In Greek mythology, Adrastus or Adrestus, , was a king of Argos, and leader of the Seven against Thebes. He was the son of the Argive king Talaus, but was forced out of Argos by his dynastic rival Amphiaraus. He fled to Sicyon, where he became king. Later he reconciled with Amphiaraus and returned to Argos as its king.

Tydeus was an Aetolian hero in Greek mythology, belonging to the generation before the Trojan War. He was one of the Seven against Thebes, and the father of Diomedes, who is frequently known by the patronymic Tydides.

In Greek mythology, Hypsipyle was a queen of Lemnos, and the daughter of King Thoas of Lemnos, and the granddaughter of Dionysus and Ariadne. When the women of Lemnos killed all the males on the island, Hypsipyle saved her father Thoas. She ruled Lemnos when the Argonauts visited the island, and had two sons by Jason, the leader of the Argonauts. Later the women of Lemnos discovered that Thoas had been saved by Hypsipyle and she was sold as a slave to Lycurgus, the king of Nemea, where she became the nurse of the king's infant son Opheltes, who was killed by a serpent while in her care. She is eventually freed from her servitude by her sons.

Panhellenic Games is the collective term for four separate sports festivals held in ancient Greece. The four Games were:

The Nemean Games were one of the four Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece, and were held at Nemea every two years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greek hero cult</span> Devotion to a hero in ancient Greek religion

Hero cults were one of the most distinctive features of ancient Greek religion. In Homeric Greek, "hero" refers to the mortal offspring of a human and a god. By the historical period, however, the word came to mean specifically a dead man, venerated and propitiated at his tomb or at a designated shrine, because his fame during life or his unusual manner of death gave him power to support and protect the living. A hero was more than human but less than a god, and various kinds of supernatural figures came to be assimilated to the class of heroes; the distinction between a hero and a god was less than certain, especially in the case of Heracles, the most prominent, but atypical hero.

Nemea is an ancient site in the northeastern part of the Peloponnese, in Greece. Formerly part of the territory of Cleonae in ancient Argolis, it is today situated in the regional unit of Corinthia. The small village of Archaia Nemea is immediately southwest of the archaeological site, while the new town of Nemea lies to the west.

The Seven against Thebes were seven champions in Greek mythology who made war on Thebes. They were chosen by Adrastus, the king of Argos, to be the captains of an Argive army whose purpose was to restore Oedipus' son Polynices to the Theban throne. Adrastus, although always the leader of the expedition against Thebes, was not always counted as one of the Seven champions. Usually the Seven were Polynices, Tydeus, Amphiaraus, Capaneus, Parthenopaeus, Hippomedon, and Adrastus or Eteoclus, whenever Adrastus is excluded. They tried and failed to take Thebes, and all but Adrastus died in the attempt.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heroön</span> Shrine dedicated to an ancient Greek or Roman hero

A heroön or heroon, also latinized as heroum, is a shrine dedicated to an ancient Greek or Roman hero and used for the commemoration or cult worship of the hero. They were often erected over his or her supposed tomb or cenotaph.

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In Greek mythology, Opheltes, also called Archemorus, was a son of Lycurgus of Nemea. His mother is variously given as Eurydice, Nemea, or Amphithea. As an infant, he was killed by a serpent at Nemea. Funeral games were held in the boy's honor, and these were supposed to have been the origin of the Nemean Games.

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In Greek mythology, Lycurgus, also spelled Lykurgos or Lykourgos, was the son of Pheres, and the husband of Eurydice by whom he was the father of Opheltes. In the earliest account, Lycurgus was a priest of Nemean Zeus, while in later accounts he was a king of Nemea.

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References

1 2 3 Trckova-Flamee, Alena. “Opheltes.” Encyclopedia Mythica, 9 Dec. 2006, www.pantheon.org/articles/o/opheltes.html.
1 2 3 4 5 Bravo, Jorge J. “Erotic Curse Tablets from the Heroön of Opheltes at Nemea.” Hesperia: The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, vol. 85, no. 1, Jan. 2016, pp. 121–152. JSTOR, doi:10.2972/hesperia.85.1.0121.
1 2 Miller, Stephen G. "Excavations at Nemea, 1997–2001." Hesperia: The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens , vol. 84, no. 2, Apr. 2015, pp. 277–353. JSTOR, doi:10.2972/hesperia.84.2.0277.
↑ Bravo, Jorge J. “The Hero Shrine of Opheltes/Archemoros at Nemea: A Case Study of Ancient Greek Hero Cult.” University of California, Berkeley, 2006, pp. 1–668.
1 2 Pache, Corinne Ondine. The Hero Beyond Himself: Heroic Death in Ancient Greek Poetry and Art. Trinity University, 2009.

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[:0-1] 1 2 3 Trckova-Flamee, Alena. “Opheltes.” Encyclopedia Mythica, 9 Dec. 2006, www.pantheon.org/articles/o/opheltes.html.

[:2-2] 1 2 3 4 5 Bravo, Jorge J. “Erotic Curse Tablets from the Heroön of Opheltes at Nemea.” Hesperia: The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, vol. 85, no. 1, Jan. 2016, pp. 121–152. JSTOR, doi:10.2972/hesperia.85.1.0121.

[:1-3] 1 2 Miller, Stephen G. "Excavations at Nemea, 1997–2001." Hesperia: The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens , vol. 84, no. 2, Apr. 2015, pp. 277–353. JSTOR, doi:10.2972/hesperia.84.2.0277.

[4] Bravo, Jorge J. “The Hero Shrine of Opheltes/Archemoros at Nemea: A Case Study of Ancient Greek Hero Cult.” University of California, Berkeley, 2006, pp. 1–668.

[:3-5] 1 2 Pache, Corinne Ondine. The Hero Beyond Himself: Heroic Death in Ancient Greek Poetry and Art. Trinity University, 2009.

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