In 490 BCE, an allied army of the Greek cities of Athens and Plataea faced the great Persian army of King Darius I. The battle occurred in Marathon, a coastal area some 43 km from the city of Athens. The conclusion of the famous Battle of Marathon was a triumph for the Greeks. Today, Marathon is a popular destination for tourists who seek to visit the grounds of the ancient battle, discover the archaeological treasures of Attica, and, of course, spend time at a beach just under an hour away by car from the center of Athens.
Marathon’s Classical History
The Tetrapolis of Marathon
The ancient Tetrapolis was one of the twelve districts of Attica, and as its name indicated, it was made up of four cities, namely Marathon, Probalinthus, Tricorythus, and Oenoe. The Tetrapolis was situated in the plains and named after the legendary hero Marathon, son of Epopeus. With time, the city of Marathon grew to overshadow the other three to the point where the Tetrapolis became known as just Marathon.
The people of Marathon claimed their rightful connection to the land through various mythological traditions. They were particularly fond of Heracles and, as Pausanias (1.15.3) recorded, “were the first to regard Heracles as a god.” It was also said that the descendants of Heracles, the Heracleidae, had sought refuge in the area.
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Sign up to our Free Weekly NewsletterTheseus was another hero connected to Marathon as the one that unified Attica’s twelve districts into a single state. Also, Theseus had come to Marathon to defeat the legendary bull that terrorized the area.
The Battle of Marathon (490 BCE)
The battle of the Marathon took place in 490 BCE and signaled the end of the first phase of the Greco-Persian wars. The Athenians, accompanied by the Plataeans and under the leadership of the Athenian general Miltiades, surprised the Persian army.
The Persians were not expecting an attack. Their troops had landed on the beach of Marathon, under the generals Datis and Artafernes, in order to move against Athens, and they were confident that no force would approach them. The surprise attack launched by the Greeks took the Persians by storm. The marshy battleground prevented the powerful Persian cavalry from playing a part in the battle, and the Greek hoplites routed the Persians. Many of the Persians were killed as they ran to their ships.
Although our main source for the battle, the Greek historian Herodotus, is “playful” when it comes to numbers, his estimates are indicative of the massacre that took place. According to Herodotus, 6,400 Persians lost their lives, contrary to just 192 Greeks.
The Marathon Road
Right after the end of the battle, a messenger named Pheidipides was dispatched to Athens to inform the city of the battle’s outcome. Pheidipides had just run from Marathon to Sparta and back. Still, he managed to reach Athens and deliver the news of the Greek triumph before collapsing and dying on the spot. Pheidipides’ tale later served as inspiration for the modern Marathon race, which is typically a race of 42.195km, the exact distance from Marathon to Athens.
Highlights of Marathon
1. The Tropaeum
Some thirty years after the battle of Marathon, the Athenians erected a 10-meter ionic column made of Pentelic marble, with statues on top (unfortunately, the statues are lost) at the very place where the battle had taken place.
The column visitors will encounter on the site today is a copy of the original currently exhibited at the Archaeological Museum of Marathon.
2. Tumulus of the Athenians (Soros)
The ancient Athenians traditionally buried their dead in the graveyard of Kerameikos. However, the fallen of Marathon were perceived as heroes deserving of special honors. To that end, the city decided to cremate the 192 fallen Athenian soldiers and bury their ashes in the field of the battle:
“… except those that were slain in the field of Marathon, who, because their virtue was thought extraordinary, were therefore buried thereright.” Thucydides History, 2.34.5
In 1890, following the steps of Heinrich Schlieman, who had tried his luck just six years ago, the Greek archaeologist Balerios Stais excavated the “Soros”, a large round mound or tumulus 9m in height and 50m in diameter. The tumulus of Marathon, as it became known, contained the cremated remains of the fallen and was also a monument to the cult of the Athenian heroes of the battle of Marathon. Vases found on the site were interpreted as ritual offerings, as was customary at the time.
Interestingly, Pausanias, who visited the site in the 2nd century CE, did not mention anything about a tumulus. Both he and Herodotus wrote that the dead’s remains were buried in graves accompanied by gravestones containing the names of the fallen by tribe. Recently, one of these gravestones was discovered in the villa of Herod of Attica, a wealthy individual from the time of Emperor Hadrian. Herod seems to have decorated his villa with gravestones from the monument of the Athenians in the process of creating a short temple for his predecessors, which included Miltiades, the general who led the Athenians in Marathon. Based on these observations, it has been suggested that the tumulus of Marathon was created during the time of and possibly by Herod. Entertaining as it may be, this hypothesis is still debated as there is much we don’t know about the tumulus of Marathon and its past.
3. Vranas: Middle Helladic Tumuli
The tumuli at Vrana, next to the Archaeological Museum of Marathon, were first excavated in 1969-1979 by Greek Archaeologist Spiridon Marinatos.
Today, the visitor will find three tumuli protected from weather conditions under a shelter and four more outside. The tombs span a period from 2000 to 1300 BCE.
4. Vranas: Tumulus of the Plataeans
A bit farther away, Marinatos also discovered another tumulus, dated in the Classical period. The tomb contained the burials of 11 males, including a 10-year-old child.
The Greek archaeologist initially identified the classical tumulus (3m high, 30m diameter) with the one mentioned in ancient sources as the burial ground of the Plataeans, who fought alongside the Athenians at the Battle of Marathon. Archaeologists have since refuted the identification with the tomb of the Plataeans, which would have probably been closer to the one of the Athenians. Regardless, the site is still widely known as the tumulus of the Plataeans.
5. The Cemetery at Tsepi
The cemetery at Tsepi is not far from the museum (c. 2.5 km from the Archaeological Museum) and is definitely worth a visit. The cemetery consists of multiple cist graves of the Early Bronze Age (3000-2300 BCE). Each structure had an opening that was closed with a stone door, allowing for multiple individuals to be buried inside the same grave. In the middle of the cemetery, a pit was opened where the mourners buried offerings that were used in rituals that were customary at the time. The finds retrieved from the cemetery are exhibited at the Archaeological Museum of Marathon and showcase unique Cycladic influences.
The cemetery is protected by a structure that was constructed in 2003/4 and allows visitors a panoramic and circular view of the site.
6. Sanctuary of the Egyptian Gods
The Sanctuary of the Egyptian Gods in Brexiza is one of the hidden archaeological jewels of Marathon.
The sanctuary was built by Herodes Atticus in 160 CE and was devoted to the Egyptian gods—mainly Serapis, Isis, and Horus—whose cult had become “fashionable” across the Mediterranean World since the Hellenistic Period. Herodes intended for the site to resemble the famous Serapeum of Canopus in the Egyptian Nile Delta. For this purpose, the sanctuary was constructed on an artificial island, just like emperor Hadrian had done with his Serapeum in Tivoli. The impressive statues that stand in the archaeological site today are reproductions of the originals which are exhibited at the Archaeological Museum of Marathon.
Next to the temple, you will also come across the ruins of the luxurious Roman baths of the same period.
If you visit during the Summer, don’t forget to bring your swimwear, as the sanctuary is right by the beach.
7. The Archaeological Museum of Marathon
The Archaeological Museum of Marathon may be small, but its contents far surpass expectations. The permanent collection houses important finds from the wider area of Marathon spanning a long period from Prehistoric to Roman times. The museum is within walking distance from Vranas, and a must-visit for sure. Highlights include the tropaeum of the battle of Marathon, statues of Serapis, the Mother Goddess, Herodes, and more.
The exhibition is comprised of six parts:
I. Cave of Pan
Archaeological finds from the cave of Pan in Oenoe which was inhabited and used as a cemetery from circa 5300 BCE until the Early Bronze Age (3200-2700 BCE). During the classical period the cave became a sanctuary devoted to the cult of god Pan.
II. The Prehistoric Times
Finds dated from the Neolithic to the Late Bronze Age, from all around Marathon.
III. The Historic Times
Archaeological finds from the four demoi that comprised the tetrapolis of Marathon between the 10th and the 4th century BCE.
IV. Herodes Atticus and his time
Herodes, who was from Marathon, was a great benefactor of the city and left his imprint in the area’s history. This room is dedicated to him, his family, and his relationship with the city.
V. The Sanctuary of the Egyptian Gods in Brexiza
Finds from the sanctuary including statues of Serapis and Isis, as well as a sphinx and a unique large lamp.
VI. The Tropaeum of the Battle of Marathon
This room features finds from the tumuli of the Athenians and the Plataeans. However, the most notable of the room is without a doubt the tropaeum of the battle of Marathon which was erected by the Athenians in commemoration of their triumph over the Persians in 490 BCE.
