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The Greek Theatre Cavea: Addenda and Corrigenda

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 October 2013

O. A. W. Dilke
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Extract

The Olympia Stadium. A detailed publication of the German excavations at the Olympia stadium is given by E. Kunze and H. Schleif, III. Olympiabericht (in JdI 1941), 12 ff., pls. 2–5, 9–10. This shows that the Greek καθέδρα well preserved, consisted of a paved area, fenced round, on which wooden seats must have been placed at the time of the festival. This, and not the later extension, is the ‘schlichte Steinpodium’ referred to in BSA XLIII, 159, n.3.

Type
Research Article
Information
Annual of the British School at Athens , Volume 44 , November 1949 , pp. 328 - 329
Copyright
Copyright © The Council, British School at Athens 1949

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References

1 This was unfortunately not available to me at the time of writing. My thanks are due to Prof. Kunze for giving me information and suggestions.

2 BSA XLIII, 159 ff., fig. 9; III. Olympiabericht, 15: ‘Das Podium ist von einer merkwürdigen Sitzbankanlage umbaut, die eine Mischung darstellt zwischen ständiger Einrichtung aus Stein und einem Provisorium aus Holz, das nur alle vier Jahre zu den Spielen aufgeschlagen wurde.’ It seems possible, however, that this wooden section was a permanent construction.

3 This point is discussed in his letter to me.

4 Unfortunately the writers rely too much on obsolete text-books for their knowledge of the Greek odeum and theatre. It would, for example, have helped their discussion of odeum acoustics to have known that the Odeum of Pericles had been excavated. One may also doubt whether periaktoi (op. cit., 348) could possibly have reflected the actor's voice out into the cavea.

5 E.g., the back wall of the logeion. Good reflectors must produce reflections which follow the direct sound closely enough ( sec.) to reinforce rather than confuse it; for this purpose reflecting surfaces must not be more than 30 ft. from the source of sound.

6 On p. 192 they add: ‘Owing to the ramp of the seats, sound struck the listener at a wide angle.’

7 BSA XLIII, 138.

8 Op. cit., 345 and n. 2.