- In November, Germany’s University of Münster delivered the ‘Skyphos,’ a two-handled wine cup given to inaugural Olympic marathon champion Spyros Louis, to the Athens National Archaeological Museum.
- The 6th century B.C. relic was housed in the German Archaeological Museum in Athens until 1930, when it disappeared; it was noted as lost until 2014, when it resurfaced in the University of Münster.
At the inaugural Olympic Games in 1896, the marathon winner received something much different than the gold medal we think of today: a piece of pottery known as a ‘Skyphos,’ a two-handled wine cup that dated all the way back to the 6th century B.C. The prize Greek relic was presented to 1896 Olympic marathon champion Spyros Louis of Greece.
Louis eventually donated the cup to the German Archaeological Museum in Athens. It remained in Greece until 1930, when it was allegedly stolen by an unknown thief, according to the Greek City Times. In 1986, fragments of the pottery, which features the images of two runners, made its way to Germany’s University of Münster as part of a private German collection the university purchased that year.
Then in 2014, pieces of the Skyphos were discovered and reassembled at the University of Münster. Five years later, the reconstructed artifact was returned to its rightful home at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. While the University of Münster spokespeople stated that the school purchased the Skyphos lawfully, they agreed to return the relic to Greece last month, the Greek City Times reported.
“Nearly a century later, [we have retrieved] an ancient Greek vase whose meaning lies not so much in that it is a work of antiquity, nor in its artistic value—which is of great importance—but in that it is at the same time linked to a singular event and an important figure in modern Greek history,” Lina Mendoni told the Greek Travel Pages. “This is a wonderful gift to the Greek people.”
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The ancient Olympic award will be on display for the public at the Athens National Archaeological Museum in Athens until February of 2020, then will be moved to its permanent home in the Museum of the History of the Ancient Olympic Games in Olympia, Greece, next March.
Before joining Runner's World, Gabrielle Hondorp spent 6 years in running retail (she has tested top gear from shoes, to watches, to rain jackets which has expanded her expertise—and her closets); she specializes in health and wellness, and is an expert on running gear from head-to-toe. Gabi began her journalism career as a Digital Editorial Fellow for Runner’s World and Bicycling Magazine, and has since advanced to a Runner's World Editor specializing in commerce. She has a double degree in English and Media and Communication from Muhlenberg College where she also ran cross country and track.
