A simple theme, carefully executed to resonate with the classic beauty and simplicity of ancient Olympic Games. To commemorate the first significant change to the format of the Olympic Games, the International Olympic Committee commissioned this custom bass. For the first 13 events, the footrace was the only contest. Longer footraces were added at subsequent Olympics. At the eighteenth Olympics, the pentathlon was added to the roster. Luckily for us, the IOC did not insist on having the design-by-committee, and we were given carte blanche for the major elements. Apparently the current president is a bit of a Stanley Clarke fan, so it's no wonder that the model was the only detail they were picky about.

	Represented in simple silhouette form are the individual events of the pentathlon. Running, discus, javelin, long jump, and wrestling. The inlays are cut from white mother of pearl to provide maximum contrast to the Ebony fingerboard. The images are adapted from ancient Greek pottery. "A body capable of enduring all efforts, either of the racecourse or of bodily strength...This is why the athletes in the pentathlon are most beautiful," Aristotle, Rhetoric, 4th century BC.

	The traditional prize for the victor, a simple crown of olive leaves. Here we have recreated the wreath in abalone and sterling silver. To add to the mystery and mystique of this bass, we've used Olive wood as the non-magnetic core of the humcancelling coil of the pickups. It's just one of those custom features that you don't notice, but makes it more special knowing it's there.

	Citius, Altius, Fortius (faster, higher, stronger) as the Olympic motto goes. Both the motto and the familiar symbol of five interlocking rings were designed by Pierre de Coubertin, co-founder of the modern Olympic Games, in 1912. The debut was postponed due to World War I, but finally the symbol appeared at the 1920 games in Antwerp, Belgium. We resized the Alembic logo for this project, and had it cast in aluminum. Later, we anodized it in the colors of the Olympic flag and interlocked the rings of the dragon as an homage to the design. Copyright restrictions do not allow us to produce our traditional wallpaper for this design as the International Olympic Committee is fiercly protective of the symbol. But at least now the Google result of "Olympic bass" will bring people to what they are actually looking for.

SPECIFICATIONS Stanley Clarke Signature Deluxe Coco Bolo top Coco Bolo back Maple and Purpleheart short scale neck Pentathlon mother of pearl inlays Ebony fingerboard Laurel wreath secret inlay Continuous wood backplates Polished brass hardware Interlocked anodized aluminum logos

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