ATHENS

FIRST ATTEMPTS

Alexandros Soutsos

Evangelis Zappas

1st Zappian Games

2nd Zappian Games

3rd Zappian Games

4th Zappian Games

1896 OLYMPICS

ISSUES

SYMBOLS

Evangelis Zappas

Evangelis Zappas was born in 1800 at a village of Epirus. In 1831 he immigrated to Bucharest, where he became one of the most important and wealthiest landowners.

Influenced by an article by the Greek poet Alexandros Soutsos, in which the need to revive the Olympic Games in modern times was underlined, Zappas decided to promote this idea and to fund this effort. After his agreement with the Greek government, the Zappian Games were organized, a combination of agricultural and industrial exhibits with athletic games.

Zappas died in 1865, leaving a large part of his enormous fortune to the organization of the Zappian Games, in order to take place every four years "according to our ancestors", as he said. According to his will, his body was buried in Roumania and his skull was transferred to the new Olympic building in Athens, which was named after him. The visitors of Zappeion can still see the inscription: "Here lies the head".

 

Modern Olympic Games:
From Athens of 1896 to Athens of 2004

Topography:
Short description of the monuments at ancient Olympia

3D reconstructions:
Some of the most important buildings in ancient Olympia rendered in three-dimensions.

VRML:
3D reconstruction of the Temple of Zeus in ancient Olympia.

Other games:
Short reference on other famous contests in ancient Greece

In the first person:
Young Ariston shares his experience in the Olympic Games

Olympic victors:
Database of the ancient Olympic victors based on each athletic event and each Olympiad

Specimen sources

Bibliography