Book Review: Combat Sports in the Ancient World

Combat Sports in the Ancient World
Combat Sports in the Ancient World

Title: Combat Sports in the Ancient World: Competition, Violence, and Culture

Author: Michael B. Poliakoff

Combat Sports in the Ancient World
Combat Sports in the Ancient World

Publisher: Yale University Press

Publication Date: 1987

Format: Paperback

Pages: 202, 6 in x 9 in

Cover Price: $24

ISBN: 9780300063127

Content

In an earlier review I described a book titled The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece. Combat Sports in the Ancient World, however, is a different book. Combat Sports is written for a more of an academic audience, but it is still very readable and worthwhile. The author is an expert on classical games, and his book examines combat sports in ancient Greece, Rome, and the Near East, primarily Egypt. The author focuses on wrestling, boxing, pankration, and stick-fighting. It analyzes the role of violent sports in ancient societies. He also discusses the attitudes of the thought leaders of those times, which ranged from complete support to complete disparagement. 

Pros

This is a no-nonsense book, and it is focused on its topic. It contains many black and white photographs of artwork and pottery mixed in among the text. Some of the photos occupy entire pages, and they are all very clear. This book was the first source which exposed me to the wrestling art in the tomb of Baqet III, more popularly known as part of the Beni Hasan tombs in Egypt, dating to the 21st century BCE. 

The author makes it clear that he does not believe in the “single origin myth.” On page 2 he says “This is not for a moment to imply that similar institutions in different locations in time and place necessarily developed the way they did because of contact with each other. I will not impose an evolutionary structure on what calls for none.” He is more likely a proponent of the convergent evolution hypothesis, which says that it is likely combat arts ended up being similar because most humans have the same bodily structure and survival requirements.

I appreciated that the author explained why certain events or terms were labelled as they were. For example, on page 9 he writes “The Greeks called boxing, wrestling, and pankration the heavy events, but there were no weight classes in Antiquity, and these events were the domain of the large and strong.” He also confronted some of the perceptions of the role of combat sports in societies. Page 95 asks: “To what extent did games, in particular combative games, figure in military thinking? Sport played a role in military preparation, but there was hardly unanimity on its value. Circumstantial evidence strongly suggests that at some periods Egyptian society believed in its efficacy, and some Greek authors explicitly acknowledge it, though militaristic Sparta placed substantial restrictions on the role of sport, and the greatest military power of the ancient world, the Roman state, despised the Greeks for their games. The range of opinion went from acceptance to complete rejection. In some instances only the exercises, not competition, were sanctioned.” 

Cons

Like most of the books I have chosen to review, I have very few concerns with this book. I would have liked a bit more detail on stick fighting, as that chapter was relatively short. If you’re looking to extract applications for modern fighting, I recommend The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece. Combat Sports shows and analyzes some techniques, but only The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece goes into great detail. The book was also published 33 years ago, so it is not current with the latest research.

It is also funny to note that the spine of my copy of the book says “Bat Sports of the Ancient World”!

Conclusion

I give this book 5 out of 5 ninja stars.

Combat Sports in the Ancient World is an excellent entry into the world of academic research for ancient combat sports. The book concludes with 28 pages of notes and a 3 page bibliography, and I expect it is a regular feature in the bibliographies of more modern works. It is a quick read but it is a well-balanced examination of an important feature of ancient civilization. Readers will recognize many elements of modern wrestling, boxing, and mixed martial arts in the text

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About Richard Bejtlich 35 Articles
Richard took his first martial arts classes in judo, karate, boxing, and combatives as a cadet at the US Air Force Academy in 1990, and continued practicing several styles until 2001. He resumed training in 2016 by practicing within the Krav Maga Global system, earning Graduate 1 rank. Richard now studies Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu with Team Pedro Sauer. Richard is married and has two daughters, and as a cybersecurity professional he helps organizations find and remove computer hackers. Richard is co-author, with Anna Wonsley, of the book Reach Your Goal: Stretching and Mobility Exercises for Fitness, Personal Training, and Martial Arts.

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