Hippeis, not Hippies

[PMBardunias]

And I think that it goes without saying that Lykurgus went to Crete and came back with his notions of running Sparta--yes?

I think most would agree that "Lykurgus" is an amalgamation of a series of law-givers. That said...

Just exactly like Crete, in fact. They have serfs, they do no work, they hunt all day, they have formalized "relationships" with religious overtones...

Crete and Sparta have very close ties all through history and share a variety of cultural elements not seen in the same form elsewhere in greece. The question of which way the influence goes is a tricky one. The fact that the Cretan hippeis still rode horses led one ancient author to assume they were the originators (yes I forget his name). But many of the shared elements are thought to have come to Crete from the mainland. Thessalians share some social elements, which may indicate they came down from the north or emerged over and over with the same social settings. Beyond Crete, there is the notion that the Spartan system shares features of the Phoenician/Carthaginian system and even the warrior caste of Egypt. This would require a new thread or two.

Paul Bardunias wrote:
Which flank of Agiselaos did Kyniska guard?

Yes, one of my snider moments that I am less than proud of in retrospect! (though still a valid criticism)