In 479 BCE, ancient city-state rivals, the Spartans and Athenians, joined in alliance against Persia, 50 years before the infamous Peloponnesian War. Together, they took the Oath of Plataea, revealing deep-seated anxieties about how the defeat would be remembered in history… and to whom the credit would fall. Paul Cartledge takes a comprehensive look at the events leading up to and consequences following the defeat of the Persians at the Battle of Plataea in After Thermopylae.
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The Aegean Greek World in the Classical Period.
From Cartledge, Ancient Greece (2009)
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Archaemenid Empire
The Persian Empire. From Bang and Scheidel, The Oxford Handbook of the State in the Ancient Near East and Mediterraena (2013).
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Herodotus
A non-veristic idealized image of the ‘Father of History’, Herodotus, whose Histories (‘Researches’) is the ultimate basis of any subsequent account of the Graeco-Persian Wars. Gianni Dagli Orti / The Art Archive at Art Resource, NY.
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Darius I
The Great King of Persia (Darius I) enthroned at his palace of Persepolis, Iran, c. 515 BCE. © The Trustees of the British Museum.
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Attic Red-Figure Jug
An Athenian lady with her oriental servant surmounts the moulded head of a bearded Persian warrior; Attic red-figure jug c. 410-400, from Nola, Italy. © The Trustees of the British Museum.
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The Immortals
The ‘Immortals’, as the Greeks knew a Persian King’s elite guard on campaign, depicted on glazed bricks from the Palace of Susa, Iran. Erich Lessing/Art Resource, NY.
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Spartan Commander
Small bronze figurine, 6th-century BCE, depicting a Spartan commander, possibly a king, wearing his characteristic (red) cloak. Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art/Art Resource, NY.
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Bronze helmet of the Corinthian
Bronze helmet of the ‘Corinthian’ (all-over) type, of the period of the Battle of Plataea. © The Trustees of the British Museum.
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Serpent Column monument to Apollo
The official monument dedicated by the victorious Greeks to Apollo at Delphi (subsequently removed to Constantinople/Istanbul, where its partial remains subsist in the old Hippodrome) took the form of a triple-coiled, triple-headed snake, whence ‘Serpent Column’; above the snakes’ heads originally was perched a golden cauldron. Vanni/Art Resource, NY.
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Temple of Athena victory over Persians
The Athenians’ Temple of Athena Nike (Victory), c. 415/405 BCE, bore a relief frieze depicting a heroic victory of Athenians over Persians. © The Trustees of the British Museum.
If an image is worth 10,000 words, this is a big book. We can learn so much from seeing as well as reading. This book looks almost as good as a visit to ancient Greece.
Cheers,