Nemea in the context of "Pindar"

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⭐ Core Definition: Nemea

Nemea (/ˈnmiə/; Ancient Greek: Νεμέα; Ionic Greek: Νεμέη) 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 (formerly known as "Iraklion") is immediately southwest of the archaeological site, while the new town of Nemea lies to the west.

Here, in Greek mythology, Heracles overcame the Nemean Lion, and here, during Antiquity, the Nemean Games were held (ending c. 235 BC) and were celebrated in the eleven Nemean odes of Pindar.

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Nemea in the context of Panhellenic Games

Panhellenic Games is the collective term for four separate religious festivals held in ancient Greece that became especially well known for the athletic competitions they included. The four festivals were: the Olympic Games, which were held at Olympia in honor of Zeus; the Pythian Games, which took place in Delphi and honored Apollo; the Nemean Games, occurring at Nemea and also honoring Zeus; and, finally, the Isthmian Games set in Isthmia and held in honor of Poseidon. The places at which these games were held were considered to be "the four great panhellenic sanctuaries." Each of these Games took place in turn every four years, starting with the Olympics. Along with the fame and notoriety of winning the ancient Games, the athletes earned different crowns of leaves from the different Games. From the Olympics, the victor won an olive wreath, from the Pythian Games a laurel wreath, from the Nemean Games a crown of wild celery leaves, and from the Isthmian Games a crown of pine.

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Nemea in the context of Stadion (running race)

Stadion or stade (Ancient Greek: στάδιον) was an ancient running event and also the facility in which it took place, as part of Panhellenic Games including the Ancient Olympic Games. The event was one of the five major Pentathlon events and the premier event of the gymnikos agon (γυμνικὸς ἀγών "nude competition").

From the years 776 to 724 BC, the stadion was the only event at the Olympic Games. The victor (the first of whom was Coroebus of Elis) gave his name to the entire four-year Olympiad, allowing modern knowledge of nearly all of them.

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Nemea in the context of Nemean Games

The Nemean Games (Ancient Greek: Νέμεα or Νέμεια) were one of the four Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece, and were held at Nemea every two years (or every third).

With the Isthmian Games, the Nemean Games were held both the year before and the year after the Ancient Olympic Games and the Pythian Games in the third year of the Olympiad cycle. Like the Olympic Games, they were held in honour of Zeus. They were said to have been founded by Heracles after he defeated the Nemean lion; another myth said that they originated as the funeral games of a child named Opheltes. However, they are known to have existed only since the 6th century BC (from 573 BC, or earlier). The winners received a wreath of wild celery leaves from the city of Argos.

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Nemea in the context of Nemean Lion

The Nemean lion (/nɪˈmən/; Ancient Greek: Νεμέος λέων, romanizedNeméos léōn; Latin: Leo Nemeaeus) was a mythical lion in Greek mythology that lived at Nemea. Famously one of the mythical beasts killed by Heracles (Hercules) in his 12 labours. Because its golden fur was impervious to attack, it could not be killed with mortals' weapons. Its claws were sharper than mortals' swords and could cut through any strong armour. After Heracles killed the lion, its pelt would come to symbolize Heracles and his strength, being used in art to both recognize the myth itself and to draw connections between Heracles' heroism to others.

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Nemea in the context of Seven against Thebes

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 either Adrastus or Eteoclus, when Adrastus is excluded. They tried and failed to take Thebes, and all but Adrastus died in the attempt.

On their way to Thebes, the Seven stopped at Nemea, where they held funeral games for the infant Opheltes, which became the origin myth for the Nemean Games. Before arriving at Thebes, Adrastus sent Tydeus on ahead to resolve the dispute through negotiation, which failed. At Thebes, Capaneus was struck down by Zeus' thunderbolt while attempting to scale the city walls. Tydeus was mortally wounded, and although Athena intended to make him immortal, she let him die when she saw him eating the brains of his attacker. Polynices was killed by (and killed) his brother Eteocles, the seer Amphiaraus was swallowed up by the earth, and Adrastus escaped the battlefield on his divine horse Arion. The victorious Thebans refused to allow the burial of the Argive dead, but Theseus marched an Athenian army to Thebes and recovered the bodies of the fallen warriors.

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Nemea in the context of Greek National Road 7

Greek National Road 7 (Greek: Εθνική Οδός 7, abbreviated as EO7) is a single carriageway with at-grade intersections in the Peloponnese region in southern Greece. It connects the cities of Corinth and Kalamata, via Nemea, Argos, Tripoli and Megalopoli. It has been succeeded in importance by the A7 motorway (Corinth–Tripoli–Kalamata).

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Nemea in the context of Hypsipyle

In Greek mythology, Hypsipyle (Ancient Greek: Ὑψιπύλη, romanizedHypsipýlē) 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.

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