The Tomb of the Athenians: the monument of the Battle of Marathon
On the occasion of the Marathon race that is taking place these days, we will talk today about the Tomb of the Athenians, the ancient monument of the Battle of Marathon, in the area of which the annual ceremony of the lighting of the Marathon Flame takes place.
The famous battle of Marathon, in honor of which the Marathon Race is held, had a positive outcome for the Athenian army and led to the defeat of the Persian army, but not without losses on the part of the victors. Specifically, the 192 fallen marathon fighters were cremated and then mass buried in the tumulus on the battlefield. The process of their burial was done at the public expense of the city of Athens.
The monument has the form of a small hill, with a height of 9m. and a diameter of 50m.
The excavation carried out by the archaeologist V. Stais during the years 1890-1891 allowed the safe identification of this monument with the Tomb of the Athenians which had become known through the work of Thucydides and Pausanias.
During the excavation, a layer of ash from the pyre was revealed, mixed with remains from the burned bones of the fallen. Along with them other interesting findings that offer information about the burial customs of the Athenians in the 5th century BC were found. In particular, many small vessels with black-figure decoration, the lekythia, were found scattered among the ashes. These were probably used for storing oils and during the period of the battle they often accompanied the dead as offerings to their burials. Also, near the center of the tomb a pit for offerings to the fallen was found, in which there were remnants of the dinner that took place in honor of the dead after their burning.
Above the tomb or around it there must have been funerary columns that mentioned the names of the fallen from each of the 10 tribes of ancient Athens. These columns are mentioned in Pausanias' work, but the only remnant of those that have been identified to date was found not in Marathon but in the Peloponnese, in one of the Roman villas of Herodes Atticus, who must have moved the specific part of one of the tombstones there.
The archaeological site is now open and accessible daily, while many of the findings found in the tomb are exhibited in the Archaeological Museum of Marathon.
Vasiliki Zygouraki
Archaeologist
Translator: Konstantina Pollali
Ticket price
Full: €6, Reduced: €3
It also applies to: Archaeological Museum of Marathon & EH Cemetery in Tsepi. The reduced price applies to all guests between November 1and March 31of each year.
Free Entry Days: 6 March - Melina Mercouri Memorial Day, 18 April - International Monuments Day, May 18th International Museum Day, The last weekend of September each year (European Heritage Days), October 28th and every first Sunday of the month from November 1st to March 31st.
Opening hours
Daily 8:30 - 15:30, except Tuesday
Location: Ag. Panteleimon - Marathon, 19007
Phone: +302294 055462
Sources: Steinhauer G., 2009. the Marathon and the Archaeological Museum.