A digital map of ancient Greece and the known ancient world as traveled by ancient geographers has been created by researchers at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.
The map lets users get to know not only the cities and their stories, but also the topography of each region, exactly as it was in antiquity.
The digital and freely accessible historical geography application PERIPLUS, which has been operating since May 2024 in the cyberspace of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), has exactly this purpose: To constitute the most complete digital map to date of the entire known ancient world, from Ireland to India, and with a time range from historical times to late antiquity.
With PERIPLUS, users can:
Unlike similar tools, PERIPLUS provides full context by showing nearby landmarks, includes polytonic Greek names, and allows toggling between ancient, Latinized, and modern names.
A central and ambitious goal of the PERIPLUS project is to digitize the entire corpus of ancient Greek literature, providing free, open-access translations in both English and modern Greek. This includes around 1,200 texts in total. The first to be completed is the Periplus of the Red Sea, a little-known 1st-century AD geographical work, translated into modern Greek by Professor Dimitrios Plantzos.
“It’s a challenging text,” explains Professor Kopanias, the project’s coordinator. “Though not widely read—even among specialists—it’s packed with references to places, which are hard to follow without a map. But once you do, it reveals an extraordinary wealth of geographical and historical information. That’s why we began with texts like this: they may seem dry at first glance, but with the help of digital tools, they come to life.”
Upcoming texts include works by Strabo, Herodotus, Homer, and more—bringing ancient literature and geography together like never before.
The platform includes three key components:
The project is entirely free, collaborative, and volunteer-driven, involving over 140 students. It aims to serve scholars, students, educators, and anyone fascinated by antiquity.
As Professor Kopanias, puts it: “Our goal is to offer a powerful, accessible tool that connects people to the ancient world—through maps, texts, and monuments—making even the lesser-known sites come alive.”
Ready to explore? Visit: https://periplus.arch.uoa.gr
