Promachos

Promachos in a Greek phalanx

In ancient Greece and during the Byzantine era, the Promachoi (singular: Promachos; Greek: πρόμαχος) were the men fighting in the first rank of the phalanx.[1][2] The word can also be used as an adjective as in "promachos line"[3] referring to the first line of battle.

The first use of the word is recorded in Homer's Iliad.[4] An obsolete English literal translation of promachos is forefighter, in Dutch voorvechter.

Name

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  • Promachos (Πρόμαχος), a young man from Knossos.[5]

Sanctuaries - Statues

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  • Athena Promachos, the famous bronze statue by Phidias that towered over the Parthenon.
  • Hermes Promachos, a sanctuary at Tanagra was dedicated to him.[6][7]
  • Heracles Promachos, a white marble statue of Heracles in the Heracles Sanctuary at Thebes. The Thebans Xenocrites (Ξενοκρίτης) and Eubius (Εὔβιος) created the statue.[8]

References

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