Why Spartan Men Had Long Hair

An Ancient Greek vase depicting warriors with long, flowing locks. Credit: Public Domain

In past Greece, hairsbreadth was an important indicator of people and spot of origin. Notably,  Spartan men were known for their long, flowing hair, which became linked to the past warriors successful antiquity.

While galore would not subordinate long, beauteous hairsbreadth with the famously austere warriors of past Greece, maintaining their hairsbreadth was precise important to the Spartans.

Men apt wore their hairsbreadth agelong for centuries successful Greece, as Homer, who was penning astir the eighth period BC and retelling stories that were overmuch older often described men arsenic “longhaired” (κᾰρηκομόωντες).

In the sixth period BC, agelong hairsbreadth was communal amongst astir men crossed Greece, not conscionable the Spartans. But by the 5th century, astir non-Spartan men successful past Greece began to chopped their hairsbreadth to a much mean length.

Men and women successful Athens often wore their hairsbreadth successful a knot, which was secured with a aureate clasp that looked similar a grasshopper, called a “tettix,” which besides translates to cicada. The peculiar hairstyle was called krobylos.

After the extremity of the Persian Wars, which lasted until 449 BC, galore men crossed Greece began to harvest their hairsbreadth short, which was seen some arsenic much masculine and arsenic distinctive from the Persians, who had agelong hair.

Previously, agelong hairsbreadth connected a antheral had been associated with wealthiness and presumption successful Athens, portion slaves had their hairsbreadth intimately cropped.

The Spartans, however, continued to support their hairsbreadth long, and non-Spartan men crossed Greece who were sympathetic to the celebrated past warriors wore their hairsbreadth agelong arsenic well.

Hairstyle differed by portion crossed past Greece

According to Oxford classicist R.R.R. Smith, ancient Greek historiographer Herodotus‘ celebrated “myth-history” entitled “The Battle of the Champions” which was apt an amalgam of mythic elements and hazy facts from the past, was written partially to explicate the Spartan contented of keeping agelong tresses.

In the story, helium details a conflict betwixt the Argives and the Spartans successful which some groups decided to connection up their champion 300 men to combat alternatively than having their full armies conflict it out.

After vicious fighting, passim which some sides claimed victory, the Spartans proved victorious and took the municipality of Thyrea from the Argives.

Herodotus notes that, aft losing Thyrea, the Argives were truthful distraught that they decided to ever support their hairsbreadth abbreviated from that clip on, and to lone turn it backmost erstwhile they took backmost Thyrea.

For their part, the Spartans, who presumably had ever had abbreviated hairsbreadth before, decided to observe their triumph by keeping their hairsbreadth agelong from past on.

In actuality, the conflict took spot astir 546 BC, a clip erstwhile it was communal for astir men to person agelong hair, careless of wherever they were from. Herodotus, however, was penning astatine a clip erstwhile agelong hairsbreadth was astir associated with Spartans, and astir different Greek men cropped their hairsbreadth short.

This mythic mentation of what was apt a existent conflict helped to explicate the antithetic taste attitudes toward hairsbreadth magnitude amongst men crossed Greece.

Ancient Greek historian, biographer, and philosopher Plutarch serves arsenic a affluent root regarding males’ hairstyles successful past Greece.

In his celebrated enactment “Parallel Lives,” which was written successful the 2nd period AD, telling the beingness stories of celebrated Greeks and Romans, Plutarch makes predominant notation of taste attitudes regarding hair.

In his section connected Alcibiades, the Athenian aristocrat who famously defected to the Spartans, Persians, and past backmost again to the Athenians during the Peloponnesian War, Plutarch describes however the young man’s quality and pleasures changed erstwhile helium joined the Spartans.

He notes that, upon pledging allegiance to the Spartans, Alcibiades kept his hairsbreadth long, took baths successful acold water, and ate meals of “black broth,” the celebrated Spartan repast made of nutrient and pig’s blood.

This statement serves to item the differences betwixt Spartan and Athenian culture. Presumably, men successful Athens kept their hairsbreadth short, bathed successful warmer water, and did not devour “black broth.”

As boys, Spartans kept their hairsbreadth rather abbreviated and began to turn it agelong erstwhile they reached puberty. Hair was incredibly important for some Spartan men and women, and galore scholars judge that men and women wore akin hairstyles successful Sparta — a apical knot connected the crown of their heads.

In Athens, however, boys had agelong hairsbreadth arsenic children and lone chopped it abbreviated erstwhile they reached puberty. This haircut was seen arsenic an important measurement toward adulthood and was treated arsenic a ineffable rite, with offerings made to Herakles and different deities.

Spartan men combed their hairsbreadth earlier battle

Spartan men cared for their hairsbreadth a large deal, peculiarly earlier battle. In his telling of the Battle of Thermopylae, Herodotus describes a celebrated country successful which a Persian spy approaches the Spartan camps to summation important accusation to walk onto his superiors.

While spying, the Persian worker comes upon an unexpected sight. While immoderate men exercised, galore combed and tended to their agelong hair.

When helium relayed this accusation to the Persian king, Xerxes, the person recovered it rather comic and believed that his troops would person small occupation slaughtering specified men.

Yet, his advisor warned him that the Spartans were apt preparing to fight, arsenic it was their customized to comb their hairsbreadth earlier battle.

The country is referenced successful the past stanza of English writer A.E. Housman’s moving enactment “The Oracles,” which reads:

“The king with fractional the East astatine bottommost is marched from lands of morning;
Their fighters portion the rivers up, their shafts benight the air.
And helium that stands indispensable dice for nought, and location there’s nary returning.
The Spartans connected the sea-wet stone sat down and combed their hair.”

In his biographies of Spartan leaders Lycurgus and Charrillus, Plutarch mentions that agelong hairsbreadth that has been well-cared for connected a antheral was incredibly important. Lycurgus is said to person claimed that beauteous hairsbreadth could marque a beauteous antheral adjacent much beauteous — and an disfigured 1 adjacent much terrible.

When asked wherefore Spartan men wore their hairsbreadth long, Charrillus is said to person responded that hairsbreadth is the “the cheapest of ornaments” (τῶν κόσμων ἀδαπανώτατος).