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Illustration of an English king between AD 800 and 1000. The king is very likely King Alfred who reigned from 871-899. The king is wearing a tunic and fur-trimmed cloak, along with striped tights and no shoes. He is looking up in an awkward position. His crown has three prongs. Both hands are raised in the air.

An English King from the 9th or 10th Century, Possibly King Alfred

Illustration of an English king between AD 800 and 1000. The king is very likely King Alfred who reigned…

An illustration of a bull and cow dancing.

Bull and Cow Dancing

An illustration of a bull and cow dancing.

Children dancing around the May-pole.

Children dancing

Children dancing around the May-pole.

"Extempore musical and terpischorean entertainment at the United States arsenal, Baton Rouge, La., under the patronage of the Forty-First Massachusetts, the one hundred and Thirty-First New York and the Twenty-Fifth Connecticut Volunteers- contraband children dancing the breakdown. If anything were necessary to show the sensuous nature of music, it would be found in the eagerness with which the contraband race pursued it. The Federals, with that love of fun which ever distinguishes the brave soldier off duty, got up, a few evenings after their arrival at Baton Rouge, an extempore musical and terpsichorean entertainment, in which the darky element was largely and loudly represented. The hall was one of the extensive rooms in the United States Arsenal building, and prominent among the promoters were the Forty-first Massachusetts, One Hundred and Thirty-first New York and the Twenty-fifth Cennecticut Volunteers. One of the features was a breakdown, which was dance, or rather jumped, with great vigor by a couple of contraband juveniles."— Frank Leslie, 1896

Civil War Musical Entertainment

"Extempore musical and terpischorean entertainment at the United States arsenal, Baton Rouge, La., under…

Scene from the story, "Old King Cole."

Dancing

Scene from the story, "Old King Cole."

A man and woman dancing.

Dancing

A man and woman dancing.

A girl and her father dancing.

Dancing

A girl and her father dancing.

An illustration of a group of men and woman dancing.

Group Dancing

An illustration of a group of men and woman dancing.

According to Norse mythology, in Elfland, elves and fairies would dance in a circle in the moonlight. "Whenever the fairies danced at night, the grass grew greener. Any one going through the forest the next day could tell where the elves had been by the rings of green grass." -Klugh, 1909

Elves and Fairies Dancing

According to Norse mythology, in Elfland, elves and fairies would dance in a circle in the moonlight.…

Fairy dancing on a leaf.

Fairy dancing

Fairy dancing on a leaf.

An illustration of five fleas dancing on a platform. Two fleas are dancing together as a pair and the other four fleas are flying off of the platform.

Flea Dance

An illustration of five fleas dancing on a platform. Two fleas are dancing together as a pair and the…

A girl dancing outside

Girl Dancing

A girl dancing outside

A girl with flowers in her hair is dancing with a small goat.

Dancing Girl with Goat

A girl with flowers in her hair is dancing with a small goat.

Engraved ornaments from "Heures a L'usaige de Chartre" published by Simon Vostre.

Heures a L'usaige de Chartre

Engraved ornaments from "Heures a L'usaige de Chartre" published by Simon Vostre.

"Dancing. The dancing of the Greeks as well as of the Romans had very little in common with the exercise which goes by that name in modern times. It may be divided into two kinds, gymnastic and mimetic; that is, it was intended either to represent bodily activity, or to express by gestures, movements, and attitudes, certain ideas or feelings, and also single events or a series of events, as in the modern ballet. All these movements, however, were accompanied by music; but the term saltatio was used in a so much wider sense than our word dancing, that they applied to disignate gestures, even when the body did not move at all. We find dancing prevalent among the Greeks from the earliest times. It was originally closely connected with religion. In all the public festivals, which were so numerous among the Greeks, dancing formed a very prominent part. We find from the earliest times that the worship of Apollo was connected with a religious dance, called Hyporchema. All the religious dances, with the exception of the bacchic and the Corybantian, were very simple, and consisted of gentle movements of the body, with various turnings and windings around the altar; such a dance was the Geranus, which Theseus is said to have performed at Delos on his return from Crete." — Smith, 1873

Salatio

"Dancing. The dancing of the Greeks as well as of the Romans had very little in common with the exercise…

"Dancing. The dancing of the Greeks as well as of the Romans had very little in common with the exercise which goes by that name in modern times. It may be divided into two kinds, gymnastic and mimetic; that is, it was intended either to represent bodily activity, or to express by gestures, movements, and attitudes, certain ideas or feelings, and also single events or a series of events, as in the modern ballet. All these movements, however, were accompanied by music; but the term saltatio was used in a so much wider sense than our word dancing, that they applied to disignate gestures, even when the body did not move at all. We find dancing prevalent among the Greeks from the earliest times. It was originally closely connected with religion. In all the public festivals, which were so numerous among the Greeks, dancing formed a very prominent part. We find from the earliest times that the worship of Apollo was connected with a religious dance, called Hyporchema. All the religious dances, with the exception of the bacchic and the Corybantian, were very simple, and consisted of gentle movements of the body, with various turnings and windings around the altar; such a dance was the Geranus, which Theseus is said to have performed at Delos on his return from Crete." — Smith, 1873

Salatio

"Dancing. The dancing of the Greeks as well as of the Romans had very little in common with the exercise…

"Dancing. The dancing of the Greeks as well as of the Romans had very little in common with the exercise which goes by that name in modern times. It may be divided into two kinds, gymnastic and mimetic; that is, it was intended either to represent bodily activity, or to express by gestures, movements, and attitudes, certain ideas or feelings, and also single events or a series of events, as in the modern ballet. All these movements, however, were accompanied by music; but the term saltatio was used in a so much wider sense than our word dancing, that they applied to disignate gestures, even when the body did not move at all. We find dancing prevalent among the Greeks from the earliest times. It was originally closely connected with religion. In all the public festivals, which were so numerous among the Greeks, dancing formed a very prominent part. We find from the earliest times that the worship of Apollo was connected with a religious dance, called Hyporchema. All the religious dances, with the exception of the bacchic and the Corybantian, were very simple, and consisted of gentle movements of the body, with various turnings and windings around the altar; such a dance was the Geranus, which Theseus is said to have performed at Delos on his return from Crete." — Smith, 1873

Salatio

"Dancing. The dancing of the Greeks as well as of the Romans had very little in common with the exercise…

"In Greek mythology, one of two, or three, or an indeterminate number of sea-nymphs who by their singing fascinated those who sailed by their island, and destroyed them. In works of art they are represented as having the head, arms, and generally the bust of a young woman, the wings and lower part of the body, or sometimes only the feet, of a bird." &mdash;Whitney, 1889. <p>This illustration is of two of the sirens depicted on a funeral marble in Chios. The top siren appears to be dancing. The one on the bottom is playing an instrument.

Sirens on a Greek Funeral Marble

"In Greek mythology, one of two, or three, or an indeterminate number of sea-nymphs who by their singing…

As soon as he played, they began for to dance.

Tom, Tom, The Piper's Son

As soon as he played, they began for to dance.

A man with long legs dancing for a boy in a sailor outfit.

Weedy and Long Was He

A man with long legs dancing for a boy in a sailor outfit.

A dancing woman.

Dancing Woman

A dancing woman.