Peltast more readily available to poorer members of society. The Athenian general Iphicrates destroyed a Spartan phalanx in the Battle of Lechaeum in 390 BCE, using mostly peltasts. In the account of Diodorus Siculus, Iphicrates is credited with re-arming his men with long spears, perhaps in around 374 BCE. This reform may have produced a type of "peltast" armed with a small shield, a sword, and a spear instead of javelins. Some authorities, such as J.G.P. Best, state that these later "peltasts" were not truly peltasts in the traditional sense, but lightly armored hoplites carrying the "pelte" shield in conjunction with
Jan Best Jan Best Jan Gijsbert Pieter Best (born 29 August 1941, Grou) is a Dutch pre- and protohistorian, comparative linguist, archaeologist, and author. For about 30 years, he was a Professor at the University of Amsterdam, where he taught ancient history, and Mediterranean prehistory and protohistory. In 1966, Best passed his graduate examinations in Classical Languages, achieving a major in Ancient History, along with minors in Greek and Latin. In 1969, he attained the doctorate with his thesis "Thracian Peltasts and their Influence on Greek Warfare". Afterwards, he succeeded in his graduate examination in Archaeology, with a major in Cultural Pre-