Too many horses: A dedication by Alcibiades revisited

An Attic relief base in the National Archaeological Museum represents an unusually large number of horses, some accompanied by young grooms. The base was originally meant for a stele, possibly a votive dedication associated with one or more equestrian victories. The iconography, date and the fact that it was apparently decorated on all four sides have occasionally led to the association of the base with a now lost double painted pinax by Aglaophon, dedicated by Alkibiades to celebrate his famous equestrian victories of 416 BC in the Olympic Games, Nemea and Pythia. If this association is valid, the base is part of one of the most controversial dedications of the Athenian statesman –and the only surviving original from the many monuments he commissioned. Using this monument as a starting point, this paper explores Alkibiades’ love for horses and prowess in horseracing as key components for the construction of his public image and his rise to political power.