A View of Ancient Greek Dance from 1895

Abstract

In 1895, the book Dancing, a broad survey of world dance history, was published in London. Mainly written by Mrs. Lilly Grove (later Dame Lily Grove Frazer) after five years of travel and intensive research, it also includes four short chapters by other authors. It was issued in later editions after 1895 and is still an important early source for information about dance history. Of the 454 pages in Dancing, twenty-six are devoted to ancient Greece. I discuss some of Grove's sources, statements, and conclusions in relation to those of more recent writings about dance in ancient Greece.