Scythian archers
Scythian archers Speusinioi Σπευσίνιοι | |
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Agency overview | |
Formed | 5th century BC |
Dissolved | 4th century BC |
Employees | 300–1,200[1][2] |
Legal personality | Government agency |
Jurisdictional structure | |
National agency | Classical Athens |
Operations jurisdiction | Classical Athens |
General nature | |
Operational structure | |
Headquarters | Tents or wooden barracks in the Agora and later on the Areopagus[3] |
Elected officer responsible |
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Notables | |
Person |
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The Scythian archers were a hypothesized
One of Aristophanes's comedies has a Scythian archer as a character, and he speaks broken Greek with an accent.
Name
The Scythian archers were called toxotai (τοξόται, literally "[the] archers"), Skythai (Σκύθαι, literally "[the] Scythians"), and Speusinioi (Σπευσίνιοι), which was named after a certain Speusinos, the alleged founder of the force.[5][6]
Theory
The theory regarding the "police force" role of the Scythian archers in 5th- and early 4th-century BC
Analysis
Scholars agree that a Scythian police force of some sort existed in Athens in the 5th century, although no one knows when it was first established or how long it lasted.
Scholars are unsure why Athenians would employ "barbarians", although it's possible that foreign slaves far from home would compose a more faithful police force than locals would.[8] It is also not clear why bows and arrows were appropriate weapons for the cramped city of Athens.[8]
In the comedy works of
Equipment
Despite their name and the presence of archers in Athenian art, researchers have questioned whether the Scythian police would have actually used bows and arrows. Archery expert Mike Loades argued that the Athenian vase paintings do not depict realistic Scythian composite bows, quivers, and clothing, especially compared to those known from original Scythian art. Accordingly, he has described the vase paintings as "fantasy 'dress-up'" by artists who wanted to depict the Scythians as exotic, but had probably never seen a Scythian bow beforehand. In this case, the term "archers" for the Athenian police force would be a byword for the police's ethnic composition, not its actual equipment.[14] To support this view, Loades points out that all ancient literary references to the "Scythian archers" describe them as beating up people, and never as them using bows.[15] Archaeological evidence also points at the Scythian police having used horse-whips with wooden handles on duty, similar to those used by some modern police units.[16]
See also
References
- ISBN 9781841717302.
- ^ a b c Vos, M. F. (1963). Scythian Archers in Archaic Attic Vase-painting. J. B. Wolters. p. 68.
- ISBN 9780859897464.
- ^ ISBN 9780691194608.
- ^ a b Rhodes, Peter J. (Durham), “Scythians”, in: Brill's New Pauly, Antiquity volumes edited by: Hubert Cancik and , Helmuth Schneider, English Edition by: Christine F. Salazar, Classical Tradition volumes edited by: Manfred Landfester, English Edition by: Francis G. Gentry. Consulted online on 13 January 2019 <https://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1574-9347_bnp_e1115610>
- Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities (1898). Retrieved 13 January 2019.
- ISBN 978-1-84603-258-5.
- ^ ISBN 085989746X. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
- ISBN 9780199545568.
- ISBN 9780809312481.
- ISBN 9780472101948.
- .
- ^ Donaldson, John William (1844). Varronianus: A Critical and Historical Introduction to the Philological Study of the Latin Language. J. and J. J. Deighton. p. 32.
- ^ Loades 2019, p. 221.
- ^ Loades 2019, pp. 221–222.
- ^ Loades 2019, p. 222.
Works cited
- Loades, Mike (2019). War Bows. Oxford; New York City: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4728-2553-7.
External links
- Scythian Archers, stoa.org