Scattered remains of a medieval tower near the Monument of the Victory at the battle of Marathon (490  BC). It is believed that this location, near the Great Marsh, was the epicenter of the battle where most of the Persians were killed.

History

The tower was Byzantine built in the 11th or 12th century. By the 15th century, it was already destroyed.

Quite a few travelers and archaeologists of the 19th century had noted that the tower was built largely of ancient blocks.

In 1965, professor Eugene Vanderpool, head of the American School of Classical Studies in Athens dismantled the tower and extracted an Ionian capital and column drums which later identified as pieces of the Trophy of the Battle of Marathon. Naturally, this work left the tower completely ruined.

The authentic trophy is kept in the museum of Marathon while a replica is erected in the original location of the monument.

Structure, Fortification & Buildings

The description of the tower before the dismantling: The tower is oriented almost exactly to the cardinal points of the compass, its long sides facing east and west, its ends north and south. It is 5.82 meters long and 4.48 meters wide and is in most places preserved to the height of the orthostate course, rising about a meter above ground level.

The inside of the tower was divided into two rooms of equal size by a light rubble wall running east and west. The foundations are of rubble and mortar and extend down to an undetermined depth.

Sources