The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece: Modern Fighting Techniques from the Age of Alexander [Paperback]

Kostas Dervenis (Author), Nektarios Lykiardopoulos (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2, 2007

An in-depth guide to the modern practice of Greek martial arts and their beginnings in ancient Greece and Egypt

• Examines the correlation between ancient depictions of one-on-one combat and how martial arts are practiced today

• Explores the close relationship between Greek martial arts and spiritual practice

• Distinguishes between Pammachon (martial arts) and Pankration (combat sports)

The ancient friezes and decorative motifs of ancient Greece contain abundant scenes of combat, one-on-one and hand-to-hand. In The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece, the authors offer close inspection of these depictions to reveal that they exactly correlate to the grappling and combat arts as they are practiced today. They also show that these artifacts document the historical course of the development of both the weaponry of the warrior classes and the martial responses those weapons required when fighting hand-to-hand.

The depiction of each ancient technique is accompanied by sequenced step-by-step photos of modern practitioners performing the various stances of one-on-one combat. In addition, the authors explain how the development of Hellenic combat arts was tied at its heart to a spiritual practice. The centeredness, clear mind, and consequent courage that develops from a spiritual practice was considered a martial strength for a warrior, enabling him to be at his best, unobstructed inwardly by conflict or inertia. The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece provides a practical and comprehensive approach to the techniques and philosophy of the martial arts of the ancient Mediterranean that will be welcomed by modern fighters.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Straightforward and insightful, a refreshingly commonsense approach to the truths hidden within both history and mythology. This is an in-depth piece of research revealing a timeless wisdom and the universality of personal experience. A must-read for all those interested in the roots of our martial and spiritual traditions.”
(William Gleason, 6th dan, director of Shobu Aikido in Boston, and author of The Spiritual Foundations of Aikido )

" . . . [The authors'] purpose for this volume . . . is an exploration of ancient combat systems for the sake of helping solve modern global problems. . . . an extremely enlightening book" (
Daniele Bolelli, M.A., Journal of Asian Martial Arts, Vol. 17, No. 2 )

"Any in-depth collection strong in martial arts history needs The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece: a survey of early hand-to-hand combat and a comparison to how they are practiced today." (
The Bookwatch, The Midwest Book Review, Jan 08 )

"Only a couple of decades ago, if one spoke about martial arts, it went without saying that they were referring to Asian combat systems. . . . While it is true that most martial systems in existence today are of Eastern origins, increasingly more information is emerging about the martial traditions of the west. . . . an extremely enlightening book. (
Daniele Bolelli, M.A., Journal of Asian Martial Arts, Vol. 17, No. 2, 2008 )

"[Dervenis and Lykiardopoulos] do a creditable job of linking the Olympic sport that many warriors know and love now with the hand-to-hand combat training and applications depicted by works of ancient Greek art." (
Tim Thompson, Journal of Martial Arts and Healing, Summer 2008 )

"Using archeological finds, architectural friezes and decorative motifs of ancient Greece, the authors have demonstrated the actual methods of grappling and close combat they demonstrate and how they are practiced today. Photos illustrate each step as well as the history and theory being presented." (
Institute of Hermetic Studies, May 2008 )

"The conclusions reached by the authors about the evolution and similarities of ancient combat are balanced and well sourced."
(Michael Rosenbaum, author of Kata and the Transmission of Knowledge in the Traditional Martial Arts, Oct 2009 )

From the Back Cover

MARTIAL ARTS

“Straightforward and insightful, a refreshingly commonsense approach to the truths hidden within both history and mythology. This is an in-depth piece of research revealing a timeless wisdom and the universality of personal experience. A must-read for all those interested in the roots of our martial and spiritual traditions.”
--William Gleason, 6th dan, director of Shobu Aikido in Boston, and author of The Spiritual Foundations of Aikido

The architectural friezes and decorative motifs of ancient Greece contain abundant scenes of combat, one-on-one and hand-to-hand. In The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece, the authors offer close inspection of these depictions to reveal that they correlate closely to the grappling and combat arts as they are practiced today. They also show that these artifacts document the historical course of the development of both the weaponry of the warrior classes and the martial responses those weapons required with hand-to-hand fighting.

The depiction of each ancient technique is accompanied by sequenced step-by-step photos of modern practitioners performing the various stances of one-on-one combat. In addition, the authors explain how the development of Hellenic combat arts was tied at its heart to a spiritual practice. The centeredness, clear mind, and consequent courage that develop from a spiritual practice were considered martial strengths for a warrior, enabling him to be at his best, unobstructed inwardly by conflict or inertia. The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece provides a practical and comprehensive approach to the techniques and philosophy of the martial arts of the ancient Mediterranean that will be welcomed by modern fighters.

KOSTAS DERVENIS is a martial arts instructor in jujutsu, pammachon, and t’ai chi chuan. He has written four books on the martial arts and martial traditions, including Nei Kung and The Magus of Java under the pen name Kosta Danaos. NEKTARIOS LYKIARDOPOULOS has a degree in physical therapy and is certified as an instructor in a number of martial arts practices. He began studying martial arts and combat sports in 1983 and has been a member of the Technical Committee of the Hellenic Pankration Federation since 1999. Both authors live in Athens, Greece.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Destiny Books (November 2, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1594771928
• ISBN-13: 978-1594771927
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,080,134 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Stellar Martial Art Historical Study and Technical Manual, December 23, 2007

By 

Rados Miksa - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece: Modern Fighting Techniques from the Age of Alexander (Paperback)

In a single word, this book is outstanding. It is well worth its price, being both more interesting and more comprehensive than similar volumes, while also being cheaper. Although I know the author and have read his previous works, this book was an unexpected surprise as I only realized that it was him as I was standing in the store and leafing through the book's pages, suddenly recognizing the author in the various photos. Thus, I had no preconceived expectations or bias towards the book.

Although my entire review can be summed up in the first sentence, below are the detailed strengths and weaknesses that I have found in this publication:

Strengths:

1. Literary Style: The book is written in an easy to understand writing style that is accessible to both amateurs and professional martial artists regardless of their age (teens and above), which makes it a great introductory book for younger adults that should get a well-rounded understanding of the combat arts before committing themselves to any one style or skill type.

2. Illustrations: The photos and illustrations are clear and easy to follow. In addition, the photos of historical images are also very clear and the tying in of historical images (i.e. - ancient paintings/sculptures of Greek warriors engaged in martial techniques) with photos depicting the technique's modern equivalent are one of the books greatest strengths.

3. Historical Detail: Tying into the above comment, the historical facts, figures and examples that the book brings forth are excellent. They give a real understanding of the background of ancient Greek martial sports and martial arts and how this is linked to the martial arts of the present day.

4. Technical Relevance: The publication contains numerous martial techniques that are clearly depicted, easily reproducible by any reader with a base level of skill and are relevant for both those interested in martial sports and/or actual personal combat, of which the book makes a clear and explained distinction. This is yet another one of its strengths, the fact that it easily shows the reader that those techniques that are effective in martial sports (i.e. - MMA) are not necessarily applicable to actual combat and can be quite dangerous if applied to a life-and-death situation, thus helping to weaken the modern illusion that current Mixed Martial Art competitions are somehow the equivalent of actual combat.

5. Factual: Quite simply, the book uses various footnotes and academic backing to support its claims. This provides more credibility to the authors' statements and deductions.

6. Unique: Although not the only book in existence that pertains to the martial arts of Ancient Greece and its surrounding Mediterranean neighbours, the way this book synthesizes historical facts with modern techniques provides it with a unique flavour that is a welcome change to the many martial art books that are focused on only one specific aspect of their art.

Weaknesses:

1. Length: I found the book to be slightly too short and certain sections could have used further detail, but there are two factors that mitigate this as a weakness. The first is that for individuals that are only interested in certain areas of knowledge, be it martial techniques or martial history or religious-martial links, the condensed aspect of each section helps to ensure that the entire book does not get bogged down by any specific section. The second mitigating factor is that the authors already stated that a second book is in the works, so anyone craving more should keep their eyes out for that volume and will be able to get more details from there.

Covering historical facts, spiritual ideas and ethical theories that link to the martial arts, while also being filled with highly effective and applicable techniques, this is a book that sets a standard for other modern martial arts publications to follow. I highly recommend it for anyone from the amateur martial artist to the professional to those simply interested in the historical and non-technical aspects of personal combat.

If you have any questions before purchasing it that have not been answered above, please let me know and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

Rados D. Miksa
Kingston, Ontario
Canada
[e-mail]

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A rare cross-comparison of methods and history., January 6, 2008

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece: Modern Fighting Techniques from the Age of Alexander (Paperback)

Any in-depth collection strong in martial arts history needs The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece: a survey of early hand-to-hand combat and a comparison to how they are practiced today. Artifacts depict these scenes in a step-by-step series of motifs capturing position and method: step-by-step photos of modern practitioners accompany these early depictions allowing for a rare cross-comparison of methods and history.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting as a historical study., October 16, 2011

By 

Anachronus "Anachronus" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Martial Arts of Ancient Greece: Modern Fighting Techniques from the Age of Alexander (Paperback)

The source material here is a mix of Greek, Roman, Minoan, and Egyptian imagery. Statuary, vases, wall paintings and the like. All fascinating stuff really, if you are new to the subject. Never quite realized that the Parthanon marbles, now in the British museum depict martial arts combat (versus centaurs!

Unfortunately, how it really worked a few thousand years ago is anyone's guess. The author tries to do just that, taking one static image, and showing how it works a lot like modern mixed-martial arts. Well--maybe, since there are only so many ways to bend the human body. There is less to go on here than in the surviving medieval fight books, which at least show multiple frames and have a text.

He tries to tie it together with some new age metaphysics; the yin/yang, the double helix and the caduceus, Alexander the great and Buddhism etc. Did the ancient athletes spend their time in their 'dojo' meditating on the nature of the cosmos? Seems a stretch. Worth a read for the history; if you want to become a mixed martial artist, a modern system would be an easier place to get started.