Archytas may have drowned in a shipwreck in the shore of Mattinata, where his body lay unburied on the shore until a sailor humanely cast a handful of sand on it.
Though credited to Pat Genaro and Sunny Skylar, (With acknowledgements to the owners of the copyright in "Tis the Day") the song is just an American version of the famous Italian song 'Mattinata' written by Ruggero Leoncavallo in the beginning of 20th century.