In the
Iliad,
Homer describes the practice of beacons lit atop a city at sunset after a day of battle, blazing high into the sky so that people far away, especially those at sea, might see them and come to help defend the city. He compares these fires to the blazing light around
Achilles head, sent by the goddess Athena, which shines toward heaven and terrifies the
Trojans. In
Aeschylus tragedy
Agamemnon, a slave watchman character learns the news of
Troy's fall from
Mycenae by carefully watching a
fire beacon. Herodotus also mentions that during
Mardonios expedition against Athens, he intended to signal King Xerxes in Sardis that he had taken Athens, using a line of beacons across the islands.
Thucydides wrote that during the
Peloponnesian War, the
Peloponnesians who were in
Corcyra were informed by night-time beacon signals of the approach of sixty Athenian vessels from
Lefkada. While when
Cnemus attacked
Salamis Island, the Salaminians informed the Athenians and asked for help by beacon-fires. Greek authors note that in the Persian Empire, there were couriers, watchmen, messengers and signal fires. These systems, particularly the chain of signal fires stretching from the empire's farthest reaches to
Susa and
Ecbatana, were so efficient that the king could learn about events across Asia on the very same day they occurred.
Philip V of Macedon during the
First Macedonian War employed a network of beacon fires to monitor enemy movements and coordinate responses across distant regions. He sent men into
Phocis,
Euboea and
Peparethos to select elevated positions suitable for lighting the beacons, while he himself stationed at
Tisaeus, a peak of great height, to observe the signals. The purpose of this system was to receive instant notice of any hostile activity so that Philip could respond quickly to threats. At the city of
Oreus, however, the system failed to function optimally, although the beacons gave Philip warning, they were lit too late due to the treachery of Plator, the garrison commandant.
Pliny the Elder notes that in Asian part of the Roman Empire, people erected beacons to warn against pirates. The Byzantine encyclopedia
Suda writes that people raised beacons above their walls to communicate with nearby allies and neighbors. When they saw an enemy approaching, they used these lights to warn others to prepare for defense, while the arrival of friendly forces was signaled to show that there was no need for alarm. The meaning depended on how the beacons were handled: a steady, unmoving light indicated friends, while a moving light signaled enemies. Polybius also wrote that
Pyrsourídas (Πυρσουρίδας) were beacons established by
Perseus of Macedonia across the entire region, enabling him to receive rapid reports about events in different locations. Suda notes that this system was similar to the later
Byzantine beacon network. ==Phryctoriae and Pyrseia==