But as soon as the first light of day appeared, the gleaming chainmail, girded with steel bands, and the shining breastplates, seen from afar, showed that the king’s forces were near. This is how Ammianus Marcellinus, a Roman historian who also served as a soldier in the legions of Emperors Constantius II and Julian in […]
Persian Empire
Posted inClassical Archaeology
Persian Gold Coins Used to Pay Mercenaries Found in the Ancient Greek City of Notion
A team of researchers led by Professor Christopher Ratté from the University of Michigan has uncovered a treasure trove of Persian gold coins in the ancient Greek city of Notion, located in western Turkey. The find, consisting of a collection of gold coins known as darics, is believed to have been used to pay mercenary […]
Posted inAncient Greece
Chares, the Athenian General who Held Power to Enrich Himself and his Supporters without Ever Winning a Major Battle
Brave to the point of recklessness, especially when it came to excessively exposing his own physical integrity during combat, Chares of Athens was a general who never enjoyed prestige or popular favor. The reason lies in his shady personality: not only did he not hide but boasted of his libertine behavior, he lacked scruples, did […]
Posted inAncient Egypt
Amyrtaeus, the Only Pharaoh of the Unique 28th Egyptian Dynasty That Ended Persian Domination
Although it is difficult to establish an exact number due to periods of significant political confusion, it is generally agreed that around three hundred pharaohs reigned over Ancient Egypt, spread across thirty-three dynasties. Of these, the most unique was likely the 28th, literally so, since it had only one ruler: Psamtik V, better known as […]
Posted inAncient Greece
Mycale, the Great Greek Victory Over the Persians that Ended the Greco-Persian Wars
This battle, fought at the same time as the Platea one according to legend, resulted in the end of the conflict, the start of the second Ionian revolt against the Persian Empire, and the beginning of the period known as the Pentecontaetia. This is the Battle of Mycale (479 B.C.). The Pentecontaetia didn’t mark the […]
Posted inAncient Greece
The Expedition of the Ten Thousand, the Greeks who Ventured into the Heart of the Persian Empire One Hundred Years before Alexander
Thalassa! Thalassa!, the legendary cry of excitement uttered by Greek mercenaries when they saw the sea, which could put an end to their painful retreat by Persian land and return them safely to their homeland, is now a classic phrase that metaphorizes that Hellenic world so closely linked to the great blue and could very […]