Grave Round B
Grave Circle B , grave circle B or digger circuit B ( Greek Ταφικός περίβολος Β' ) denotes a cemetery from the bronze time in Mycene . He was from about 1650 to 1550 BC. In use and was finally abandoned in favor of Gräberrund A as the burial place of the upper class.
description
The cave circle B is about 120 m west of the walls of the upper town of Mycenae. Presumably the main road to the Lion Gate passed north. Grave round B has a diameter of 28 m and was surrounded by a 1.55 m thick and 1.20 m high circular wall made of field stones. A total of 26 graves were found within the cemetery, which were designated with Greek letters in the order in which they were discovered . There were 14 shaft graves , twelve simple burials and stone box graves , in which a total of 38 skeletons were found. Piles of stones were piled up over most of the graves. Grave steles up to 2 m high were erected only over four shaft graves. A hunting scene was carved on two grave stelae.
An 18 m long section of the enclosure wall has been preserved in the north. A concrete protective roof was built over grave Ρ (Rho).
history
The funerals can be divided into three phases. The last and longest phase, which comprises two generations, is subdivided again:
| Phase: | Period | period |
| Early phase: | approx. 1650-1625 BC Chr. | Middle Helladic III AB |
| Late phase I: | approx. 1625–1600 BC Chr. | Middle Helladic III B |
| Late phase II A: | approx. 1600–1575 BC Chr. | Transition from Middle Helladic III B to Late Helladic IA |
| Late phase II B: | approx. 1575-1550 BC Chr. | Late Helladic IB |
The first graves are very small and only dug shallowly into the rock or ground. They also have a few simple accessories such as clay pots. The graves gradually grew larger and the burials richer by the end of the Early Period. The first larger shaft graves appear during the late phase I (e.g. grave Beta). The last burials coincide with the first burials of Gräberrund A. in the middle of the 15th century BC. The grave of Rho was rebuilt, given a dromos and used for a new burial.
The graves
Grave Α (alpha)
Grave Alpha was the first grave to be discovered. Above him stood a gravestone decorated with hunting scenes. It is the third largest shaft grave within Grave Round B and is the only large grave facing west-east. First a woman and a short time later a man was buried. Two silver, two bronze vases and one made of faience were found as gifts . A cup made of faience is similar to the Middle Minoan specimens (MM III B) from Knossos . Weapons found were a spearhead, three Type A swords , a tongue-shaped blade, three knives and boar tooth plates from a boar tooth helmet . Grave Alpha coincides with the late burial in grave VI of the cave circle A.
During the construction of the Alpha grave, two earlier, smaller Middle Helladic box graves were partially destroyed. They are referred to as Grab Alpha 1 and Grab Alpha 2 . Grave Alpha 1 contained a corpse whose head was lost during the construction of Grave Alpha. Grave Alpha 2 contained no body. However, a skeleton was found between grave Alpha and grave Delta, which probably originally came from this grave.
Grave Β (beta)
Grave Beta is the earliest larger shaft grave and dates to the late phase I. It was carved into the rock and had brick walls on the short sides and post holes in all four corners. A tall man about six feet tall was buried on his back. There were five vases at the head end, two at his feet and a dagger on his right. The dead man wore an electron bracelet and shoulder strap . One vase is in the matte-painted style , another with floral patterns comes from phylakopi or mimics the style.
Grave Γ (gamma)
Grave Gamma is the second largest shaft grave and lies roughly in the middle of the grave round B. The long sides were bricked with stones, while the short sides were made of adobe bricks. Two stelae were set up on the grave - one undecorated and one decorated. After the tomb collapsed in antiquity, the undecorated stele was later erected again, with the ornate stele serving as a support for them. Grave Gamma is the only grave in which four people were buried. The first burial took place in late phase I and the last in late phase II A. First, a man was buried with his head turned north. Afterwards, a woman who received only a few grave goods was also buried with her head facing north. She was about 35 years old, had arthritis of her back and hands, and had a broken arm, but it had healed well. A young man was buried at her feet with his head facing east. Another young man was buried last with his head turned north. For this purpose, the remains of the first two burials were pushed together on the east wall. The deceased was about 28 years old and traces of trepanation were found on his skull . The man died a short time after this procedure. Among the additions to this last corpse was an electron mask in a wooden box.
Grave Δ (delta)
Shaft grave Delta was carved about 2 m deep into the rock. A man was buried in late phase I. A second male reburial took place in Late Phase II B, while the remains of the first were moved to the northeast corner. A bronze sword with a golden handle, a bronze knife , a bronze dagger, another sword, flint arrowheads and an amphora were found among grave goods . A short time later a woman was buried, with the additions from the previous burial being pushed against the west and east walls.
Grave Ε (epsilon)
A woman was buried in a stool position in the Epsilon shaft grave. The rich additions included golden ornaments, headdresses and stars, four bronze vases, a bronze basin, a crater and two jugs. On the basis of the found pottery - several unpainted and matt-painted jugs - the burial can be dated to late phase II. A tooth was found in the grave and clay pots in the backfill of the grave, which apparently belonged to an earlier burial in Grave Epsilon. This took place during the late phase I, as the Grauminy ceramic shows. Above the grave, a grauminy chalice was found, which contained the bones of a small bird and was placed here during the funeral ceremony.
Graves Ζ (zeta), Η (eta) and Θ (theta)
The stone box tombs Zeta, Eta and Theta, all of which date from the early phase, were very small and only about half a meter deep. Since they are all in the northern part of the cave circle B, they are also summarized as the Early Northern Group . Grave Zeta is connected to an earlier depression in the rock in the west and was therefore separated from it with an adobe wall. There were holes in all four corners for posts that presumably supported the roof structure. A man over six feet tall was buried in this grave in a stool position with his head facing east. A bronze sword and pottery in the early Cycladic style were found as additions.
In Grab Eta, a man was placed in the stool position with his head facing northwest. He had been given a tongue-shaped dagger and five vases. A man was also buried in Grave Theta. The grave was partially destroyed during the construction of a modern water pipe, but a single-edged knife and several clay vases could still be identified as additions.
Grave Ι (iota)
Iota shaft grave was dug almost 3 m deep into the rock. Two male skeletons were found there: one from the early phase and one from the late phase I. The remains of the first burial with its few accessories, including a silver vapheio cup with a gold rim, were pushed aside and the second dead man in the middle buried in the grave. Among his offerings were a sword, tongue-shaped blade, tweezers, two triangular gold ribbons, eleven vases and four large storage jugs.
Grave Κ (kappa)
The southernmost grave is the shaft grave Kappa, in which only one corpse was buried. From the lack of weapons, one inferred that it was a woman's grave. The funeral from the late phase II B contained only four vases as gifts, two of which were painted in the bichrome style .
Grave Λ (lambda)
The Lambda shaft grave was carved about eight feet into the rock. Two male skeletons were found there: one from the late phase I and one from the late phase II A. The remains of the first burial with its accessories, including two obsidian arrowheads, four gold ribbons and a gold strip, were moved to the side as in Iota tomb pushed to make room for the second burial. The second body was about six feet tall. His offerings, which lay on the west wall, were a sword, a spearhead, a dagger, two knives and arrowheads made of obsidian and flint.
Graves Λ 1 (Lambda 1 ), Λ 2 (Lambda 2 ), Σ (Sigma), Τ (Tau) and Φ (Phi)
The graves Lambda 1 , Lambda 2 , Sigma, Tau and Phi are among the earliest graves in Gräberrund B and are grouped together as the Early Southern Group . The graves Lambda 1 , Lambda 2 , Tau and Phi were partially destroyed during the construction of the Lambda grave. Ioannis Papadimitriou interpreted the walls in the south of Grave Round B as the early enclosure of the Early Southern Group. Today, however, it is assumed that these are the foundations of residential buildings.
Grave Lambda 1 was a small box grave in which a corpse was buried in the early phase. Only two ceramic vessels were found as gifts. George E. Mylonas suspected that the second skeleton in Lambda Tomb was robbed of its gifts by grave robbers by this tomb. Grave Lambda 2 was also a box grave. An adult and a boy were buried in this during Late Phase I. In the Sigma stone box grave, only the skeleton of a man about 1.75 m tall was found. He lived to be around 50 and had numerous injuries that had healed: multiple head injuries, broken ribs, and a misshapen shoulder blade. He was baptized by the scientists of Pelops . Grab Tau is a 1.70 m deep shaft grave with mud brick walls with no traces of a burial. It was probably emptied when Tomb Lambda was being built. The late Phase I box grave Phi contained a burial disrupted by the construction of the Lambda grave.
Grave Μ (My)
Shaft grave My is dug 1.20 m deep into the rock. Two children, probably girls, were buried in it. The grave goods of the first were piled up together with the skeleton in the northwest corner. 14 vases from the late Middle Helladic period were found, including Greuminy ceramics and two Minoan Askoi (Late Minoan IA). The later buried skeleton in the center of the grave wore a necklace made of semi-precious stones with a seal stone. It dates to Late Phase II A.
Grave Ν (Ny)
Shaft grave Ny is the northernmost grave within Grave Round B. On the grave there was an undecorated grave stele. The earlier of the two male skeletons was buried during Late Phase I and was later pushed to the west wall. It coincided with the burial in grave II and the first in grave VI of the round grave A. The rich additions consisted of a bronze jug, a golden vapheio cup, three golden tiara, golden buttons, boar teeth from a helmet, a Cretan pyxis made of alabaster, three Bronze swords, a spearhead, two daggers and a knife. Two clay vessels and a marble pyxis come from the Cyclades. The second burial from late phase II B took place at the same time as the so-called Agamemnon from grave V of grave circle A.
Grave Ξ (Xi)
The smallest shaft grave Xi has a depth of 1.90 m. A pile of stones had probably been built over the grave. In a corner lay the remains of a woman in a crouched position. Since the woman was found without any grave goods, her funeral could not be dated. It has been suggested that the woman's tomb was destroyed when Tomb Xi was built. Others believed it possible that the woman was a slave who was sacrificed to accompany the child, whose skeleton lay in the center of the grave, to death. The child wore a gold crown with chains made of semi-precious stones, gold hair accessories and earrings, a chain with pearls made of stone and faience, and a ring. The grave can be dated to the end of the Middle Helladic Period III B on the basis of a gray Miny goblet and a matt-painted kantharos .
A child's grave from the Late Phase was found near Tomb Xi just below the surface. Four small vases were found in the tomb, which is referred to as tomb Ξ 1 (Xi 1 ).
Grave Ο (omicron)
The largest shaft grave, Omikron, was dug 3.50 m deep into the rock. An undecorated stele stood over the grave. The woman who was buried earlier (SH IA) was pushed to the west wall without anything else. Chalices, steatite chains and ceramic spindle whorls that were found in the earth above the grave are believed to belong to this burial. Later a young woman was buried in Omikron's grave (SH IB). Her rich gifts consisted of a golden diadem, a necklace made of carnelian and amethyst , a necklace made of amber , a necklace with gold pearls, gold earrings and a bowl in the shape of a duck made of rock crystal .
Grave Π (pi)
The smallest shaft grave Pi is about 1 m deep. At the beginning of the Late Helladic Period (SH III A) a boy or a small man was buried here lying flat on his back. Three yellow Miny goblets and a simple jug were found as additions.
Grave Ρ (Rho)
A shaft grave carved into the rock with ends made of bricks was destroyed by the construction of Grave Rho. A hole in the rock was apparently dug right next to it, into which the skeletons and ceramic vessels were transferred. The hole was then closed with stones. Based on the additions, this first use can be dated to the end of the Middle Hellad period (MH III B). Grave Rho is a chamber grave with access passage (Dromos) and gateway (Stomion) from the 15th century BC. Chr. (SH II). The walls were built from poros , the side walls of which are vertical in the lower part. In the upper part, the stones protrude inwards until the side walls are about 30 cm apart, thus forming a false vault . Stone slabs lay over the opening to cover it. The walls of the burial chamber were covered with stucco with red and black stripes painted on them. Similar graves with vaulted burial chambers and covered dromos are only known from Mycenaean settlements in the eastern Mediterranean ( Ugarit in Syria and Trachona in Cyprus ). The grave was robbed in ancient times.
Grave Υ (Ypsilon)
Ypsilon shaft grave, which was only 0.80 m deep in the rock, was damaged on the north side during the construction of the Rho grave. Only an adobe wall separated the two graves. The approximately 30-year-old woman who was buried in it had grave goods similar to the girl from grave Xi and is therefore also dated to the end of MH III B. She wore a gold tiara, a gold hair band, silver earrings, and a necklace of semi-precious stones and faience. Among the nine ceramic vessels there was a gray Miny goblet, two matt-painted jugs and a matt-painted Askos.
exploration
In 1951 a carved stone stele was discovered during the restoration of the grave of Klytaimnestra . The following summer, the Greek archaeologists Ioannis Papadimitriou and George E. Mylonas therefore carried out excavations and discovered tomb Α (alpha) below the stele. In the following three years they uncovered all of the graves within the grave circle. 1973 George E. Mylonas published the excavation results.
University of Manchester staff examined the skeletons and made facial reconstructions of six men and one woman , which are now on display at the Manchester Museum . Using DNA analyzes, attempts were made to clarify the relationships between 22 deceased persons.
From 2007 to 2009, the design and presentation of Gräberrund B was revised. The original burial mound with stone ring was reconstructed above Grab Alpha and a copy of the grave stele was erected on it. At Grab Gamma, a partial reconstruction was used to illustrate how the roof structure of the graves was built. The southern, poorly preserved graves were filled in again. The access road, which lay over the western part of the cave circle B as well as the shaft graves Omikron and Pi, was moved further west so that the graves are visible again today.
literature
- Soren Dietz: The Cyclades and the Mainland in the Shaft Grave Period - a summary . In: Proceedings of the Danish Institute at Athens II . 1998, p. 9 ( ojs.statsbiblioteket.dk [accessed June 21, 2014]).
- Rodney Fitzsimons: Monumental Architecture and the Construction of the Mycenaean State . ( academia.edu [accessed June 15, 2014]).
- Elizabeth French : Mycenae. Agamemnon's Capital . Oxfordshire 2013, ISBN 978-0-7524-1951-0 .
- Giampaolo Graziadio: The Chronology of the Graves of Circle B at Mycenae: A New Hypothesis . In: American Journal of Archeology . tape 92 , no. 3 , July 1988, p. 343-372 , JSTOR : 505552 .
- George E. Mylonas: Grave Circle B of Mycenae . In: Studies in Mediterranean archeology . tape 7 . Lund 1964.
- George E. Mylonas: Ο ταφικός κύκλος Β των Μυκηνών . 1973.
- Piotr Taracha : Weapons in the Shaft Graves of Mycenae. Remarks on the Chronology . In: Archeology and Heinrich Schliemann . Athens 2012, ISBN 978-960-93-3929-2 , pp. 118 ( aegeussociety.org [PDF; accessed June 21, 2014]).
Web links
- DNA reveals sister power in Ancient Greece. Retrieved June 10, 2014 .
- The Greek Age of Bronze. Swords and Daggers. Retrieved June 15, 2014 .
- Mycenae in Greece. Retrieved June 15, 2014 .
Coordinates: 37 ° 43 '50.75 " N , 22 ° 45' 17.31" E