Daily Life of the Ancient Greeks

The Public Sphere 247
prince Cyrus: “The custom is established for all time and among
all peoples that when a city is taken in war, both the persons and
their property belong to the captors.” This was no doubt partly
due to the protracted nature of siege warfare, and partly to the fact
that besieging armies often suffered great hardship, notably from
plague and other diseases.
Athenian Military Service
When Athenian youths reached the age of 18, they were required
to serve for two years in the army as ephebes in the company of
other members of their tribes (ephêbos means “poised at the moment
of youth”). Though we do not know this for a fact, service in the
ephebate was probably limited to those who had the resources to
purchase a suit of hoplite armor. Their first year was devoted to
training in hoplite and light-armed warfare. Light-armed warfare
The earliest depiction of the Trojan Horse in Greek art. From Homer by
Martin Thorpe (Bristol, U.K.: Bristol Classical Press, 1973). Reprinted
by permission of Duckworth Publishers.