Polıteía 49
say that the ephors administered the government at Sparta with the advice
and consent of the gerousía and the assembly. Aristotle rightly observes that a
magistracy empowered to convene a city’s assembly, set its agenda, and pre-
side over it is virtually “authoritative [kúrıos] within the regime.”^40
The ephors were particularly influential in the sphere of foreign relations.
It was within their prerogative to determine when and for how long a for-
eigner might visit Sparta and a Spartan might go abroad. They ordinarily re-
ceived embassies, conducted negotiations with foreign powers, and decided
when to place matters before the gerousía and assembly. They had influence,
if not control, over the appointment of the harmosts who administered com-
munities under Sparta’s dominion, and they were competent to issue these
officials directives. In time of war or civic emergency, the ephors called up the
army, and they determined which age groups were to march.^41 In foreign af-
fairs, there were few functions that these magistrates did not perform—other
than serve as Sparta’s commanders in the field.
At home, the ephors’ chief task—as the title of their office suggests—was
oversight. They enforced the sumptuary laws and determined which pieces
of music and poetry would be tolerated within the community. They kept tabs
on the néoı, checking each day to see that the “young men” in the sussıtía
observed the regulations regarding clothing and bedding and subjecting them
every tenth day to a physical examination. Ultimately, they appointed three
outstanding members of this age-category who had reached their prime to
select from among their fellow néoı and command the three hundred hıppeîs
that formed the royal bodyguard. Likewise, the ephors controlled the treasury,
disbursing necessary funds, overseeing the collection of taxes, and receiving
the proceeds from the sale of prisoners and other booty captured in war. They
also manipulated the calendar, intercalating months when this was deemed
n e c e ss ar y.^42 At Sparta, the ephors controlled virtually every aspect of daily life.
Each year, when they took office, the ephors declared war on the helots,
employing the young men of the krupteía to eliminate the obstreperous and
those menacingly robust. At the same time, Aristotle tells us, they reissued the
famous decree calling on each Spartiate to obey the law, to comply with the
customs of the land, and to observe the ancient practice of shaving his upper
lip. According to Plutarch, this last injunction was intended as a reminder to
the néoı that they were to obey the city even in the most trivial of matters.^43
In overseeing the many aspects of Spartan life and public policy for which
they were responsible, the ephors exercised broad judicial powers. At the time