This painting was discovered in one of the ancient houses in the city of Philippopolis (Shahba) and then transferred to the National Museum in Damascus, where it was maintained and restored and displayed there. It came in the form of a square containing inside it the square figurative painting with a side length of 2.2 x 2.2 m, which shows the details of the events of the story of Hippodamia and the chariot race. We notice through the displays and characters in the Philippopolis mosaic painting a similarity between what is displayed in the painting and what was mentioned in the legend of the marriage of Hippodamia and Pelops, where King Oenomaus is depicted sitting on a seat without a backrest and perhaps a wooden chair or sofa in the southwestern corner of the bottom of the painting. He appeared in his royal dress consisting of a red woolen robe decorated with yellow circular strips that appeared in many corners and lines of the robe, including the sleeves and chest, while he wears the crown of the kingdom on his throne and is surrounded by a circular halo in the shape of a multi-ringed dish. Of course, his personality was identified through his appearance and the writing of his name above his throne. In the same show, his daughter Hippodamia appeared standing upright, wearing long, loose clothes and a cloak embroidered at all edges with decorative frames, covering her head and body. She then took it in her left hand to raise it off the ground, while with her left hand she presented the figure of her fiancé to her father. Of course, the artist recognized her identity by writing her name next to her left arm. The figure of the fiancé Pelops appears before the king in luxurious and decorated equestrian dress, while a red robe is tied behind his back over his left shoulder, and his head is covered with the Virginian hat known as “Orpheus”, as it appeared above the heads of many of the knights present in the square. The young Pelops is depicted before the king as a strong knight, bowing his head slightly forward, extending his right hand, asking for the hand of his daughter Hippodamia, while holding a crooked scepter in his left hand, resting it on his left shoulder, while wearing leather boots on his feet, and the rest of his clothes are red decorated with yellow gold ribbons. In the foreground of this scene, a picture of a girl similar in appearance, shape and dress to Hippodamia is displayed, and she may be her sister, shaking hands with another knight who appears in the same appearance as Pelops, and he may be her fiancé or husband. This scene shown in the picture shows that the subject is related to the occasion of the girl’s engagement to her father; according to the Greek story, the king’s soothsayer predicted to him that he would be killed by his daughter Hippodamia’s husband. In return, when his daughter fell in love with Pelops, he decided to challenge him to the horse racetrack. If he won, he would marry his daughter, and if he lost, he would be killed. This painting shows the details of this story, which were consistent with the myth.
The story:
Hippodamia is the daughter of Onomaus, king of Pisa in Elis. Onomaus (the father) is the son of Ares, the god of war, and a prophecy told him that his death would be coupled with the marriage of his daughter, so he announced that he would only marry her to the one who defeated him in a chariot race. He was confident of the outcome because Poseidon (the god of the sea), who was said to be his father Ares, had given him horses that could not be outpaced. Thus, there were many students seeking Hippodamia’s hand, because he used to kill his defeated competitors. Finally, Peleus was able to defeat him by a trick, by bribing his groom, who glued the wheels of his chariot to its axle with wax. During the race, the wax melted, the wheels came off, and Onomaus died, pulled by his horses. Pelops married Hippodamia and became king of the Elis. His reign was glorious, and his name was given to the entire Greek peninsula (Peloponnese), meaning the island of Pelops.