1784 Bocage Map of the Battle of Plataea, Ancient Greece

This is a fascinating 1784 map showing the Battle of Plataea by Barbie du Bocage. The battle of Plataea occurred in 479 BC and was the last battle in the second Persian invasion of Greece. It took place near the city of Plataea in Boeotia, and was fought by an alliance of the Greek city-states, including Sparta, Athens, Corinth and Megara, against the Persian empire of Xerxes I. The map features Mount Cithaeron, where the tide of the battle turned. It also notes the camp of Madonius, the Temple of Ceres, Road to Thespiae, Temple of Apollo, and other important landmarks. The battle concluded with a large portion of the Persian army trapped in their camp where they were slaughtered, essentially brining the invasion to a close. Prepared by M. Barbie de Bocage, after D'Anville, in 1784 to illustrate the Travels of Anacharsis.

Anacharsis was a Scythian philosopher who travelled from his homeland on the northern shores of the Black Sea to Athens in the early 6th century BCe. Apparently he made a great impression on the Greeks, who considered him a forthright, outspoken 'barbarian. He is considered a forerunner of the Cynics.