Athens was an ancient Greek city-state that dominated the Attica region and was one of the oldest cities in the world, with a recorded history spanning 3,400 years. It emerged as a powerful city-state and a center for arts, learning, and philosophy, being the birthplace of Western civilization and democracy. In modern times, Athens is a large cosmopolitan metropolis and an important center for economic, financial, industrial, maritime, political and cultural life in Greece. Sparta was also a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the Eurotas River in Laconia. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC and rose to become the dominant military land-