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Greek perceptions of the Persians had initially been closely intertwined with that of the Medes. Their power had extended eastwards of the territory of the Lydians. The expansion of the Persian Empire under Cyrus II, who overran the kingdoms of the Medes and the Lydians and affected the Greek cities in western Asia, was perceived as the sovereignty of “the Mede” (Xenophanes F 18 Diels). Also, the series of fights which took place in the aftermath of the Ionian Revolt (500/499 BCE) was referred to as Medika and the cooperation with the “enemy” was known as Medism. Still in 472 BCE an eponymous Medos appears as the first army leader of the Persians in Aeschylus' tragedy Persae (765). But from Herodotus on (1.125.4; 7.61.3, 15.2; 7.62.1), the Persians are perceived as descendants of Perses or his father Perseus and the term Medes is linked with Medeia (Tuplin 1997; Rollinger 2003; Michels 2011; for all sources see Kuhrt 2007).

The ethnic groups and cities of the Persian Empire were first systematically treated about the time of the Ionian Revolt in Hecataeus of Miletus' geography (periodos ges), the original of which is lost (FGrH 1). The introductory scene of Aeschylus' Persae, performed in 472 BCE, still starts with a list of warriors and commanders of Xerxes' army. The soldiers had been recruited from all over the empire (1–92) and the fleet counted 1207 ships (341–343), reminiscent of Homer's Iliad. Thus, the victory against these superior forces appeared even more astounding. About two decades before, Phrynichus affected the Athenians with a tragedy that addressed the taking of Miletus by the Persians (Hdt. 6.21). After the Greek victory at Salamis (480 BCE), he also staged the misery of the defeated enemy in his Phoenician Women. But unfortunately, Phrynichus' texts are lost. Simonides' lyrical poetry is at least preserved in fragments. The most important parts refer to an elegy on the battle of Plataea (479 BCE) where the warriors are compared to the heroes of the Trojan War. Obviously, it was prestigious to partake in the glory of the winners of the Persian Wars by telling their story. Thus, in 470 BCE Pindar praised Hieron, city lord of Syracuse, as savior of Hellas' freedom. His victories over Carthaginian, Phoenician, and Etruscan forces in the battle of Himera in Sicily and on sea at Cyme in southern Italy (480 and 474 BCE) were compared to those at Salamis and Plataea (Pythians 1.72–180). A new interpretation of the unexpected success in fending off Xerxes' invasion was given by Aeschylus' Persae. The young and imprudent king is misled by bad advisors. Overestimation of his gigantic forces leads to his defeat. The crossing of the Hellespont and sacrileges exhibit his hubris and bring about disaster (743–752, 807–812). The Athenians had already shown at Marathon (490 BCE) what men of free will were capable of doing against an army led by a despot (cf. 235–244). At Salamis, the freedom of Hellas was at stake (cf. 402–405). Xerxes instead had to fear that the peoples of Asia would no longer be prepared to bow to the Persian rule, pay tribute, and prostrate before the king (584–590) (Boedeker and Singer 2001; Bichler and Rollinger 2002; Föllinger 2009: pp. 53–76; Lenfant 2011).

With the ascent of Athens as a leading power in the Aegean, the recollection of the victory at Marathon, along with the fame of Salamis, began to gain importance. Huge monuments solemnize the victories of the past. At the same time, there is a fundamental change regarding the image of the Persians. The enemy now appears weak and wimpish and at times even disparaged in scenes of the genre (Miller 1997; Miller 2002). With the outbreak of the Peloponnesian War (431 BCE), the question of diplomacy in regard of the Persian Empire gained momentum. Aristophanes' first preserved comedy, the Acharnians (425 BCE), evokes the stereotypical images of Persian luxury and indulgence. It warns against the dangers of getting involved in diplomatic and political relations with the former enemy. In the last years of the Peloponnesian War the treaties which had been signed in 412 BCE by Sparta and the Great King proved to be disadvantageous for Athens. Probably it was then that the Persians by Timotheus was performed, a lyrical piece that told about the battle of Salamis to the accompaniment of the kitara, giving a rather disdainful impression of the Persians (Schmal 1997; Hutzfeld 1999; Huber 2002; Madreiter 2012).

Of crucial importance for the further development of the image of the Persians was the prose‐style writing of the last decades of the fifth century BCE. Unfortunately, very little testimonial evidence of the first Persica survives – from Dionysius of Miletus (FGrH 687) to Charon of Lampsacus (FGrH 687b) and Hellanicus of Lesbos (FGrH 687a).

The same counts for the fragmentary parts of the portrayals of political leaders dealing with Persia by Ion of Chios (FGrH 392) and by Stesimbrotus of Thasos (FGrH 392). A prose treatise which was probably written in the last quarter of the fifth century BCE and is still preserved in the corpus of the Hippocratic writings played a specific role in creating the cliché of despotism in Asia. The unknown author of the treatise on Airs, Waters, Places underlines the role of the environment for the physical and mental condition of the inhabitants of a certain area. According to him, the soft Asian climate played an important role in fostering the despotic reign so typical of the Asian continent, whereas the spirit of freedom that prevailed in Europe was due to the harsher living conditions in this part of the world (Airs, Waters, Places 16; 23). Those who proved to be the bravest among the inhabitants of Asia were the ones who did not happen to live under the rule of a despot but who lived autonomously, no matter whether they were of Hellenic or Barbaric origin (16.5.). Later on, Aristotle changed this schematic view, reinforcing the antithesis between Hellenic and Barbaric tribes (Politica 1327b 23–33; 1285a 19–22) (Jouanna 1996).

One of the most important accounts of the Persian Empire ever written appears with the Histories of Herodotus. The main line of his narration concentrates on the rise and later fate of imperial power in Asia which threatened the world of autonomous Greek settlements and entangled the Greeks in a series of bloody wars. The fatality of an imperial policy is demonstrated impressively in the story of the Persian kings, ranging from Cyrus to Xerxes. Thanks to the gradual expansion of their empire, Herodotus had the possibility of giving account of the customs and conventions of the many different peoples of the world, including in his considerations the stories of the former kingdoms of the Lydians, the Medes, the Babylonians, and the Egyptians. The power of the Persian Empire seemed to have reached its apogee under Darius I. From this point onward, the conflicts between the Greek and Persian worlds began to gain increasing importance. Herodotus depicts the Persian Wars as a set of related events starting with the Ionian Revolt and ending with the success in fending off Xerxes' invasion army. His account of events ends when the Athenians begin to extend their power over the Aegean after their victories at Salamis, Plataea, and Mycale in 480 and 479 BCE, thus following in the footsteps of the Persians. He only briefly comments on the further history of the Greeks that was characterized by growing conflicts between Athens and Sparta, which had stood united against the external enemy. These conflicts culminated in the outbreak of the Peloponnesian War in 431 BCE. The famous events of the past assume the role of a teaching play, which serves as a starting point for assessing the tragedy of the current period from the point of view of Herodotus and his audience (Bichler 2000; Bichler and Rollinger 2011; Bakker et al. 2002; Dewald and Marincola 2006; Rollinger 2004 Degen 2017; Irwin 2013; Irwin 2017).

Herodotus' ethnographical accounts, especially those of Persian customs and conventions (cf. 1.131–140), are basically interpreted from a Greek point of view and give an ambiguous mirror image. The empire of the Persians is characterized by impressive resources. Its infrastructure, such as the network of roads and the messenger service, is astounding (5.52–54; 8.98). The Persians owed their power to a simple way of life that was organized according to strict rules (cf. 1.71, 89; 9.122), but the propensity of the elite to a luxurious lifestyle puts their attainments at risk. Nevertheless, scenes of luxury, intrigues, and harems at court, which are described excessively in later accounts, appear only rarely in Herodotus (cf. 3.130; 9.108–113). In spite of their luxury lifestyle, the Persians prove to be brave warriors even in defeat. Nevertheless, there is a tendency to interpret Persian kingship with its claim of universality and its supportive ceremonial, like the practice of proskynesis (bowing/prostrating oneself before the king), in a critical way. Herodotus' accounts of the Great Kings are quite differentiated. But there is a basic pattern of their misconduct. They break the rules and cultic commandments of their own society and tend to overestimate their own power while underestimating the enemy. Thus, they fail in all their megalomaniacal campaigns. But in this regard, the various tyrants and despots resemble each other, no matter whether they are of Non‐Greek or of Hellenic origin!

Herodotus also describes a series of Persian characters of noble spirit, wisdom, bravery, and courage who are prepared to go as far as self‐sacrifice (cf. 3.80.2–80.5; 83). Wise Persians warn against the dangers of hubris and deplore the human inability to avoid fatal events (cf. 7.10; cf. 7.18, 45–52; 9.16). At times, the Greeks are even put to shame through the example of the Persian kings. Cyrus condemns the dubious activities and the cheating that took place in the Agora (1.153). Darius I shows respect to foreign customs (3.38). Even a despotic ruler like Xerxes does not want to infringe legal principles such as the protection of envoys, in harsh contrast to the Athenians' misbehavior in the Peloponnesian War (7.134–137) (Bichler 2000; Dorati 2000; Jacobs 2003; Rollinger 2010).