Foreign topography; or, an encyclopedick account, alphabetically arranged, of the ancient remains in Africa, Asia, and Europe; forming a sequel to the Encyclopedia of antiquities / By the Rev. Thomas Dudley Fosbroke.
- Thomas Dudley Fosbroke
- Date:
- 1828
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: Foreign topography; or, an encyclopedick account, alphabetically arranged, of the ancient remains in Africa, Asia, and Europe; forming a sequel to the Encyclopedia of antiquities / By the Rev. Thomas Dudley Fosbroke. Source: Wellcome Collection.
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![pear. In the description of the position held by the Greeks at Tliermopylae, Leonidas is represented as not being within sight of the Persian army, which would have been the case, if he had been any where further towards the north when the Spartans com- posed the advanced guard. During the day, upon which a person was sent by Xerxes to reconnoitre, they had descended from their camp, and were seen at the entry of the defile without the wall, a little removed from the south-east side of the small bridge, where the Turkish Dervene now is upon the outside of the old wall, for these Straits are still guarded as a frontier pass, and they are as much the gates of Greece, as they were when Xerxes invaded the country. Hence the descent becomes more rapid to- wards the narrowest part of the Straits, and the way, leading through thick woods, which cover the declivity, is in many places broken up by torrents, as it is described by Strabo. In about three quarters of an hour from the Polyandrium, we arrived at the wall mentioned by Herodotus. The remains of it are still very considerable, inso- much that it has been traced the whole way from theGulph of Malia to the gulph of Corinth, a distance of twenty-four leagues, extending along the mountainous chain of Oeta, from sea to sea, and forming a barrier towards the north of Greece, which ex- cludes the whole of ^tolia and Thessaly. In this respect it resembles the wall of Antoninus in the north of Britain ; for it is built with large and rudely-shaped stones, which have been put together with cement, and in many places the work is now almost concealed by the woods and thickets which have grown over it. Immediately after passing this wall upon the outside of it, and upon the left hand, is seen the foun- tain, precisely in the situation that must have been occu])ied by the Spartans when reconnoitred by Xerxes. It is shaded by an enormous plane-tree of unknown anti- quity. Thence, leaving the fountain, we entered the extensive bog, through which a narrow paved causeway offers the only approach to all the southern parts of Greece. This causeway has, upon either side of it, a deep and impassable morass. Plere is set the T.’urkish Dervene or barrier, upon a small narrow stone bridge which marks the most important point of the whole passage, because it is still occupied by sentinels, as in ancient times, and is therefore even now considered as the HTAAI of the Southern Provinces. The Thermce or Hot Springs, whence this defile received the appellation of ThermopylcB, are at a short distance from this bridge. A little further on towards the north the old paved causeway leads to these springs, immediately after passing the bridge. The causeway here scarcely admits of two horsemen abreast of each other.” “ The nature of this narrow pass of Thermopylae is owing entirely to the marshy plain which lies at the foot of a precipitous part of Mount Oeta, between the base of the mountain and the sea. This marsh, never having been drained, is for the most part one entire bog; and there is no possibility of obtaining a passage by land along the shore from south to north, or rather from south-east to north-west, excepting over the paved causeway here described. The most critical part of the Pass is at the hot springs, or at the bridge, where the Turkish Dervene is placed. At the former, the traveller has the mountain close to him on one side and a deep bog on the other. A handful of brave troops might therefore intercept the passage of the mightiest army that the Persian or any other Eastern Emperor ever mustered, and this we find they did, until a jjath was pointed out for the troops of Xerxes, which conducted his sol- diers by a circuitous route over the mountain to the rear of the Grecian camp. The same path was also pointed out to us. It is beyond the hot springs towards the north, and is still used by the inhabitants of the country in their journey to Salona, the ancient Amphessa. After following this path to a certain distance, another road branches](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b22012035_0413.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
