The Nemean Games
Preserved but no longer current.
One of the four great national festivals of Greece, celebrated at Nemea every alternate year, the second and fourth of each Olympiad. Legend states that they were instituted in memory of Arche- morus, who died from the bite of a serpent as the expedition of the Seven against Thebes was passing through the valley.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “The Nemean Games” mean?
One of the four great national festivals of Greece, celebrated at Nemea every alternate year, the second and fourth of each Olympiad. Legend states that they were instituted in memory of Arche- morus, who died from the bite of a serpent as the expedition of the Seven against Thebes was passing through the valley.
Is “The Nemean Games” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.