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PLATAIAI I N BOIOTIA Pages 28I-320 a PRELIMINARY REPORT of THE HESPERIA 72 (2003) PLATAIAI I N BOIOTIA Pages 28I-320 A PRELIMINARY REPORT OF THE I996 200I CAMPAIGNS AB STRACT Recentresearch at Plataiai in southernBoiotia by the Plataiai Research Project (1996-2001)has addedsubstantially to our knowledgeof the site'shistory. Inhabitedsince the Neolithicperiod, Plataiai was protected by fortifications fromthe early5th centuryB.C. onward.Under the aegisof KingPhilip 11 the settlementarea was greatlyenlarged. The circuitwall was shortenedby the insertionof a diateichismaduring Hellenistic times, and the citylaidout along an orthogonalgrid. The settlementremained in this formuntil Late Roman timeswhen a newfortification wall again constricted the perimeter. Occupa- tion continueduntil medieval times, when Plataiai was abandoned, replaced by two smallervillages nearby. The battleof Plataiai,one of the mostpivotal and decisive military en- gagementsln. anequlty,. conanues . to craw attenhon . ln. popu.bar accounts aswell as morescholarly treatises on the ancientworld.l Various assump- tionsand a wealthof speculativecommentary exist on the battlein gen- eraland, more specifically, the reconstructionof the difficulttopography in whichit tookplace. The latteris complicatedby the almostcomplete lossof the historicaland natural markers mentioned by Herodotosin his narrationof the eventsof 479 s.c.2A preoccupationwith the battleand the defeatof the Persianforces under Mardonios has overshadowed the 1. The followingorganizations Precision/Trimble,Vienna, for lending Fundingwas provided by the Greek andindividuals deserve our gratitude: equipment;Dora Bakoli, Alexandra Ministryof Culture,the Municipality the GreekMinistry of Culture,for Charami,Panagiotis Defingos, Peter of Plataies,the Jubilaumsfonds der generouslygranting the necessary Glass,Dimitris Koutsodimos, Fritz OsterreichischenNationalbank, the .. permits,funding the excavations,and Krinzinger,Veronika Mitsopoulou- OsterreichischesArchaologisches providingworkers and equipment; the Leon,Anne Salisbury,and Elena Institut,the Universityof Minnesota, OsterreichischesArchaologisches Vlachoiannifor theirsupport and andthe ViennaCity Council. Institut(Vienna and Athens), the cooperation.Ian K.Whitbread and All of the photographswere taken Universityof Minnesota,and the MichaelJ. Boydkindly contributed a by Konecny. InstitutfRir Klassische Archaologie, reporton the geophysicalwork carried 2. Hdt. 9.17-88. See Pritchett1957; UniversitatWien, for supportingthe out at the site.Special gratitude is 1965, pp. 103-121; 1980, pp. 289-294; project;the FitchLaboratory at the alsodue to the anonymousHesperia 1982, pp. 88-101; 1985, pp. 92-135; BritishSchool at Athens,for conduct- reviewers,whose comments consider- Lazenby1993, pp. 217-247, with ing geophysicalprospection; Spectra ablyimproved this article. extensivebibliography. American School of Classical Studies at Athens is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve, and extend access to Hesperia ® www.jstor.org 282 V. ARAVANTINOS, A. KONECNY, AND R. T. MARCHESE communityfrom which this crucialevent took its name.Plataiai was a townof statureprior to theearly 5th century and, on morethan one occa- sion,played an important role in shapingthe history of centraland south- ernGreece. The PlataiaiResearch Project was consequently inaugurated in 1996 in orderto gaina betterunderstanding of the siteand the role it playedin the5th and4th centuriesB.C. aswell as in earlierperiods of history.Work hasfocused largely on definingthe site'ssequence of habitationand the severalbuilding phases of the extensivefortification walls. Field survey in theinitial years of investigationwas followed by a multinationaltrial exca- vationsponsored by the Ephorateof Boiotia,the Universityof Vienna, andthe Universityof Minnesota.After six seasonsthe sitehas yielded a substantialbody of datathat clarifies a numberof questionsfor both the prehistoricand historic periods. Plataiai was more than a nameassociated witha famousconflict. It wasalso a prosperouscommunity and an impor- tantpart of the politicaldevelopment of centraland southern Greece.3 GEOGRAPHICAL SETTING The site of Plataiaiis locatedin an extremelyfertile district below the slopesof Mt.Kithairon in southwesternBoiotia (Fig. 1). The ancient town occupieda siteof considerableimportance in antiquitydue to its strategic locationbetween Thebes, Athens, Megara, and Corinth. Situated a few kilometersto thewest of the majorland route from central Greece across Kithairontoward the south into Attica and ultimately into the Peloponnese, Plataiailay within easy reach of a numberof aggressivestates that coveted thesite for economic and military reasons. The desire to controlmountain passesfrom the Corinthianand Saronic Gulfs and the networkof roads thatpassed through them- eitherinto Boiotia in the northor via Athe- nianterritory and the Corinthiato the Peloponnesein the south- placed a premiumvalue on Plataiaiin antiquity. Althougha moreeasily traversed southern route between the Corin- thianGulf and the Aegeanvia the Isthmusof Corinthexisted, an alter- nateroute from the Gulfof Kreusis(modern Livadostra) and the Bayof AyiosVassilios traversed the Parasopia,passed near Plataiai, and contin- ued,via the AsoposRiver, until it reachedthe straitsof Euboiato the northeast.4Although this diagonalcourse through the heartof Boiotia was importantto the localpopulation, its realvalue was as a routefor interregionalmilitary campaigns. In this mannerthe "Kreusis-Euboian 3. Forpreliminary reports on the improveon this,the presentarticle is evaluationand cannot yet be presented ongoinginvestigations at Plataiai,see intendedas a concise,preliminary in greatdetail. A finalreport of the first Konecny1998; Konecny, Boyd, and summaryof the resultsof the 1996- phaseof investigationat Plataiaiis Whitbread1999; Aravantinos and 2001 campaignsat the site.It doesnot, currentlyin preparation. Konecny2000; Aravantinos, Konecny, however,replace prior reports, where 4. Forthis routesee, e.g., Buck andMarchese 2001; Konecny, in press. moredetails are provided for findings 1979,p. 12;Buckler 1980, p.10; Theseprovide piecemeal, sometimes presentedhere. Additionally, much of Kirsten1950, col.2267; and Pritchett fragmentary,information on the various the materialretrieved during survey 1965,pp.52-57. stagesof the projectas it developed.To andexcavation is currentlyunder I A9 )} Vd> -2 ; e Lls ,,, isk 2, 0 Megarian1,0,,_,0 ( : - . ; '; - i&t ;thitPlainREletfheldi h;ht1W?1l . ' - . - , ;0 - PLATAIAI IN BOIOTIA: I996-200I CAMPAIGNS 283 Haliartos 42 / - ) < @ ,5) lJ b O X C, 9 A,,o' C \ _ r \ I A f X f -; Y X S-- ._ J f mu;A, X gSl ) ,! '9 n - r- - - E .x004 0 S f X Vt / : 0' X Figure1. Map of Plataiai and south- - --- - ----- - --- ---/ - -- - -- - - --- -- westernBoiotia.A.Konecny o 1 2 _ 5 _ _ 10 km road"offered one distinctadvantage over the moreaccessible and heavily traveled"Corinthian road." By avoiding Corinthian territory and the west- ernSaronic Gulf, the road through Boiotia provided a possiblealternative routeto the CorinthianGulf and,consequently, access to the northern Peloponneseif the southernroute was blocked.The strategicpotential thatPlataiai possessed, however, could only be fullyrealized by a commu- nity of somesubstance. In essence,the controlof Plataiai-byThebes, Athens,or Corinth-wouldoffer unique opportunities. Plataiai'simportance in the politicalaffairs of centraland southern Greecewas enhanced by its favorableenvironment. The plainof Plataiai possessedarable land of high qualitywhile the mountainslopes to the southmade pasturage and the cultivationof olivespossible. These slopes werealso heavily wooded and could furnish substantial wealth in wood products.Plataiai was also provided with abundant sources of freshwater. Thiscombination of resourcesmust have been the primary reason for the establishmentin the Neolithicperiod of a settlementat the base of thewide plateau that forms the ancient site of Plataiai.With a sustainable economicfoundation-easy access to a continuous,secure supply of water anddeep fertile soils in theimmediate vicinity aswell as access to build- ing materialsfrom the slopesof Mt. Kithaironand a defendablelocation, Plataiaipossessed the criticalrequirements for development and growth. 284 V. ARAVANTINOS, A. KONECNY, AND R. T. MARCHESE It is evident,however, that the inhabitantsof Plataiaifaced a dilemma: uniquestrategic and economic factors guaranteed an importantplace in thepolitical structure of centralGreece but such opportunities also brought aboutspecific consequences. The towncould not standalone as aninde- pendententity, and its strategicand economic potential was too valuable to be ignoredby the dominantstates in the region.5 HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE Plataiaiis wellrepresented in historicalcommentary, especially that of the Classicalperiod. In thismanner, the site possessed a degreeof importance notshared by comparable small communities in theregion. Plataiai is first mentionedin theCatalogue of Shipsfor contributing troops to theBoiotian contingentthat went to Troy,indicating that the sitewas of someimpor- tanceduring the timefrom which Homer drew his sources.6During the Archaicperiod the site developed into a prosperoustown important enough to challengethe authority of Thebes. Although Thebes was able to domi- nateits southernneighbor and much of the Parasopiaearlier in the Ar- 5. See,e.g., the remarksin Buckler chaicperiod, fierce antagonism toward their northern neighbor and a de- 1980,pp. 11-12. sirefor autonomy led the Plataians to seekassistance from
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