Elis was formed, like many of the Grecian cities, more especially in the
Peloponnesus, by the union of several hamlets.
It was a large and populous city in the time of Demosthenes; but in that
of Homer it did not exist.
Elis was originally governed by kings, and received its name from Eleus,
one of its monarchs. It was famous for the horses it produced, whose
celebrity was so often tried at the Olympic games.
"On our arrival at Elis," says Anacharsis, "we met a procession on its
way to the temple of Minerva, and that made part of a ceremony, in which
the youth of Elis contended for the prize of beauty. The victor was led
in triumph; the first, with his head bound with ribands, bore the
weapons to be consecrated to the goddess; the second conducted the
victim; and the third carried the other offerings. I have often seen
similar contests in Greece, for the young men; as well as for the women
and girls. Even among distant nations, I have seen women admitted to
public competitions; with this difference, however, that the Greeks
decree the prize to the most beautiful, and the barbarians to the most
virtuous."
This city was once ornamented with temples, sumptuous edifices, and a
number of statues. Among these was particularly distinguished the group
of the Graces, in a temple dedicated to them. They were habited in a
light and brilliant drapery;--the first held a myrtle branch in honour
of Venus; the second, a rose, to denote the spring; the third, a die,
the symbol of infant sports.
The chief curiosity at Elis, however, was a statue of Jupiter, formed by
Phidias[229]. The serene majesty and beauty of this piece of sculpture
ranked it among the wonders of the world. Jupiter was represented
sitting upon a throne, with an olive wreath of gold about his temples;
the upper part of his body was naked; a wide mantle, covering the rest
of it, hung down in the richest folds to his feet, which rested on a
footstool. The naked parts of the statue were of ivory; the dress was of
beaten gold, with an imitation of embroidery, painted by Panænus,
brother of Phidias. In the right hand stood the goddess Victoria,
turning towards the statue, and carved, like it, out of ivory and gold;
she was holding out a band, with which she appeared desirous to encircle
his olive crown. In his left hand the divinity held a parti-coloured
sceptre, made of various metals skilfully joined, and on the sceptre
rested an eagle. Power, wisdom, and goodness, were admirably expressed
in his features. He sat with the air of a divinity, presiding among the
judges of the games, and dispensing the laurel wreaths to the victors,
calm in conscious dignity. The statue was surrounded with magnificent
drapery, which was drawn aside only on particular occasions, when the
deity was to be exhibited. A sense of greatness and splendour
overwhelmed the spectator, the height of the figure being about forty
feet.
The structures of Elis[230] seem to have been raised with materials far
less elegant and durable than the produce of the Ionian and Attic
quarries. The ruins are of brick, and not considerable; consisting of
pieces of ordinary wall, and an octagon building with niches, which, it
is supposed, was the temple, with a circular peristyle. These stand
detached from each other, ranging in a vale southward from the wide bed
of the river Peneus, which, by the margin, has several large stones,
perhaps the relics of the gymnasium.
The ruins of Elis, says Mr. Dodwell, are few and uninteresting. Of
Grecian remains nothing is seen but a confused wreck of scattered
blocks. There are some masses of brick-work, and an octagon tower of the
same materials, which appears to be of Roman origin. It is surprising
that there should be so few remains of the temples, porticoes, theatres,
and other edifices, which embellished the town at the time of Pausanias;
but some suppose that much is covered by the earth; since it is
considerably higher than its original level[231].