The pass at Thermopylae by Andy Montgomery

The pass defended by a core of 300 Spartans (along with many others, including, notably 1,000 Phocians) in 480 BC against the advance of the Persians under King Xerxes. The coast has receded about a mile since the time of the battle due to the sedimentation of the Malian Gulf . The earlier coastline was approximately along the line of the modern highway, just visible in the upper right of the picture. with a plain of about 100 meters and narrower sections at either end.