Ancient Greek Maps

While researching the first Persian invasion of Greece, I was surprised to discover that the origin stories behind the modern-day Marathon and Spartathlon races both involved misunderstandings about the ancient sources that inspired them. Marathon After the Battle of Marathon, the Athenian army runs back to their city before the Persian fleet can get there. The modern-day Marathon race was inspired by the well-known legend of Philippides, a Greek messenger, who runs back to Athens from Marathon, then collapses and dies after announcing that the Athenians have won the Battle of Marathon.  Our main source for the history of the Persian wars is Herodotus , but this legend never appears in his work. Instead of Philippides, Herodotus has the entire Athenian army rushing back to the city before the Persian fleet can get there, and the Athenian soldiers are running the entire 42-kilometer distance in full body armor, whereas a messenger like Philippides would dress as lightly as possible. But