12-20-2008, 12:09 AM
Hello,
I would like to know
a) how long were the Long Walls of Athens at the eve of the Peloponnesian Wars overall, that is including all sections, even those which were protected by others?
b) how long was the longest outer defense line, that is not taking into account those parts which were covered by other walls?
Scranton (1938) writes:
178 stades. However, he is unsure how long a stade in m actually is (he calculates on the basis of 150 m, thus b) would be 26 700 m). Additionally, Thucydides does not give any number for the section of the Asty between the Phaleric Wall and the Northern Long Wall, since it was covered by those two walls. Interestingly, depending on how long these parts were, the Long Walls actually seem to be the longest or second longest city walls ever erected (competing with the 15th century Nanjing walls, China). What is your calculation?
http://www.livius.org/lo-lt/long_walls/long_walls.html
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/c ... Mauern.png
I would like to know
a) how long were the Long Walls of Athens at the eve of the Peloponnesian Wars overall, that is including all sections, even those which were protected by others?
b) how long was the longest outer defense line, that is not taking into account those parts which were covered by other walls?
Scranton (1938) writes:
Quote:Thucydides gives the lengths of the walls to be defended as follows:
*Asty circuit, omitting the portion between the Phaleric Wall and the Northern Long Wall, 43 stades
*Long Walls, 40 stades
*Phaleric Wall, 35 stades
*Peiraeus (complete, although only half was to be defended), 60 stades.
SOURCE: Robert L. Scranton: "The Fortifications of Athens at the Opening of the Peloponnesian War", ''American Journal of Archaeology'', Vol. 42, No. 4 (1938), pp. 525–536
178 stades. However, he is unsure how long a stade in m actually is (he calculates on the basis of 150 m, thus b) would be 26 700 m). Additionally, Thucydides does not give any number for the section of the Asty between the Phaleric Wall and the Northern Long Wall, since it was covered by those two walls. Interestingly, depending on how long these parts were, the Long Walls actually seem to be the longest or second longest city walls ever erected (competing with the 15th century Nanjing walls, China). What is your calculation?
http://www.livius.org/lo-lt/long_walls/long_walls.html
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/c ... Mauern.png
Stefan (Literary references to the discussed topics are always appreciated.)
