5oo

UPPER ARM OF FALLEN BOXER

Hand-to-
hand en-
counters.

Upper
arm:
attri-
buted to
over-
thrown
pugilist.

Com-
parison
with
small
relief of
Hagia
Triad a
'rhyton'

leaves no doubt as to the pugilistic character of the encounter. Sometimes,
indeed, we see clear traces of a cestus and boxing gloves.

There are cases, again, of actual combat in which a victorious warrior,
havingdashed aside his opponent's
weapon, seizes him by his head and
pulls him over. A very spirited
clay seal-impression from Hagia
Triada gives a good idea of such a
hand-to-hand encounter( Fig. 344).1

It is possible, indeed, that in
the fragment, of which the photo-
graphic presentment is given
opposite in Fig. 345, we have
part of one of the typical figures
of the vanquished in a boxing
match of which examples are to
be found both in ' rhyton' reliefs
and intaglio designs.

o o

The remains of this stucco
high relief consist of a part of a
man's upper right arm with the
left shoulder pushed up and the
biceps in high action. The protrusion of the muscle due to the tensity of
the strain is quite abnormal, and points to specialized athletic training.

It will be seen that the violent pushing up of the right shoulder,

recognized by'anatomists in this relief, is a.feature

in the action of the fallen pugilist reproduced in

Fig. 343 from a zone of the Hagia Triada 'rhyton',

who seeks, by the aid of his left arm, to prevent

himself from rolling completely over owing to the

force with which his opponent has struck him. This

episode of the boxing ring, as has already been

pointed out,2 is taken over, together with other Fig- 344. Clay Sealing
, , , • ii • • i a r ^i from H. Triada showing

leatures, by the more martially inspired Art ot the Hand-to-hand Fight.

Mainland Minoan branch in the illustration of the

scene of armed combat on a gold signet-ring from the Fourth Shaft Grave at

1 From Dr. Doro Levi's useful supplemen- Archeologica di Atene, vol. viii-ix, 1929,
tary work, Le Cretule di Haghia Triada e di p. 123).
Zakro, p. 57, Fig. 130 {Ann. della r. Scuola 2 P. of M., i, pp. 690-3.

Fig. 343. Boxer knocked out.
' Rhyton '.

H. Triada