als translated into Hittite for horse training from the 13th and
14th centuries b.c.e. Likewise, there probably existed competi-
tion that involved lift ing or throwing objects.
Th e king engaged in leisure pursuits that were calcu-
lated to increase his majesty. Domination over wild preda-
tors spoke well of his ability to deal with human adversaries.
For example, Assyrian palaces were covered with scenes of
the king killing lions for the benefi t of the vassal delivering
tribute. Th e ritualization of actual hunts by the king would
involve animals that were typically captured or raised and
then placed, perhaps bound, in a context that would present
no actual danger to the ruler. A relief depicting a hunt by the
Assyrian king Ashurnasirpal II (r. 883–859 b.c.e.) shows a
lion being released from a cage. Th e depictions of hunting
scenes on vessels used by individuals points to the hunt as
being the activity of the elite as well. It is impossible to de-
termine whether there was any infl uence of Egypt upon such
activities as boxing, wrestling, or hunting. Although these
activities doubtless developed independently of each other,
the rules, social contexts, and individual moves could have
been infl uenced from either cultural realm to the other.
Astragali, animal knucklebones, were an integral part of
gaming. Th ey functioned as four-sided dice, as each edge was
distinct. Th ese bones were also used in divination. Imitation
astragali were made of stone, metal, or glass. Game boards,
some with holes or depressions, have been discovered as well.
One Babylonian game board included the signs of the zodiac.
Among the best-known infl uences of Egypt upon leisure time
is the presence of the board game senet, found throughout
Syria and Palestine beginning in the Neolithic Period (ending
ca. 3800 b.c.e.). Th e game board has been found from Cyprus
to Iran and most points in between.
Musicians, dancers, jugglers, and acrobats are depicted
in literature and artwork. Music was ubiquitous at work (as
work songs), at festivals (as religious or wedding songs), and
in daily life (as perhaps lullabies or taunts). Dancing accom-
panied many festivals. Watching acrobats and jugglers per-
form is probably as close to viewing spectator sports as the
bulk of the population could come.
With the coming of the Hellenistic world, the face of an-
cient Near Eastern sports and leisure changed dramatically.
Athletic competitions and theatrical performances became
an integral part of the social life of at least some strata of
the cities of the region. Hippodromes, gymnasiums, palaes-
trae (facilities for sports practice), and amphitheaters appear
throughout the ancient Near East. Athletic competitions
were spectator sports in this era, a big business that in turn
spawned other affi liated businesses, such as concessions and
prostitution. Fans of chariot racing arose in the provinces as
well as the Roman heartland, evidenced by graffi ti extolling
both green and blue factions at Alexandria.
In addition to spectator sports and theater, the com-
ing of the Greeks and Romans also provided for new types
of games, new music, and other novel entertainment staples.
Along with sports, the presence of public baths presented acultural challenge throughout the ancient Near East as public
nudity was nearly a universal mark of shame in the region.ASIA AND THE PACIFIC
BY KIRK H. BEETZ
In ancient Asia and the Pacifi c sports and games served not
only as entertainment but also to train players in physical and
intellectual skills they needed to survive. Two sports, wres-
tling and archery, were common in most cultures. In China
wrestling matches could attract large audiences in cities and
were oft en part of celebrations staged by the rich and power-
ful. By the time of the Han Dynasty (ca. 202 b.c.e.–ca. 220
c.e.) the sport had become ritualized, taking a form similar
to modern Japanese sumo wrestling. In India victors in even
one tournament sponsored by a king not only became famous
but indeed made their fortunes for the rest of their lives. Th ese
contests took place outside the gate to the king’s palace, and
individual wrestlers oft en were sponsored by nobles. Th e op-
ponents began the contest by grasping each other around the
waist, with their chins resting on each other’s shoulder. Each
then tried to force the other down or to break his hold, either
of which brought victory.
Archery was a popular sport. In China nobles took ex-
cursions into the countryside to hunt game, usually birds,
with their bows. Th ese hunting parties could be extremely
elaborate, with the nobles or kings accompanied by profes-
sional hunters and large retinues of servants. It was long
the rule in Chinese society that no hunter take more than
one of every two animals he killed, but during the Han
Dynasty many of the rich or the nobility slaughtered every
game animal they could fi nd, ruining once-healthy forests.
Hunting as a sport was open to people of every walk of life
in China, with even poor peasants being able to show off
their prowess occasionally with a bow. Archery contests, by
contrast, were usually formal aff airs, sponsored by a king
or a provincial ruler, in which aristocratic participants shot
at targets.
In India archery as a sport was reserved for the nobil-
ity. Only kings and nobles actually hunted for sport. By the
Gupta Empire (ca. 320–ca. 600 c.e.) kings had hunting parks
stocked with animals captured by professional hunters in the
wild. A king’s hunt was an elaborate undertaking, with the
king riding a chariot, a horse, or an elephant, surrounded by
dancing girls and assisted by servants and game wardens. Ar-
chery contests were open to nobles. A target was placed atop
a tall pole. Th e winning archer received a prize, sometimes
even marriage to a daughter of the king.
Spectator sports in China included horse racing, dog
racing, and cockfi ghting. All involved gambling, with people
wagering on the outcomes. Th e Chinese offi cially regarded
gambling as a vice because it meant that people were gaining
money without contributing anything worthwhile to society.
High-stakes betting was particularly scandalous and some-
times resulted in even nobles being punished by the king orsports and recreation: Asia and the Pacific 10510895-1194_Soc&Culturev4(s-z).i1051 1051 10/10/07 2:30:53 PM