Round tomb of Kolones

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Round tomb of Kolones

The round tomb of Kolones stands on the highest point of a peninsula southwest of Kolones on the island of Salamis . The rotunda is a grave from the second quarter of the 4th century BC. At least four corpses from the same family were buried within the grave monument. Presumably the grave was built by a wealthy resident of the neighboring city or from the capital of the island of Salamis.

Exploration and reconstruction

There have been numerous speculations in the past about the function of the rotunda. Some suspected that the place mentioned by Strabo Kychreia, a foundation of the hero Kychreus , was located here and therefore assumed that the building was a watchtower of the city. Others wanted it to be a temple for Aias described by Pausanias . Still others believed it was a signal tower (Fryktoria). In 1995, 1997 and 1999 the Greek archaeologist Iphigenia Dekoulakou carried out excavations. Here she was able to clearly clarify that the rotunda is a grave monument. Since the grave had collapsed over the millennia, it was decided to partially rebuild it. The construction technician K. Mamalouglas was commissioned to carry out the reconstruction. Work began in April 2013. The original plan was to put 43 of the 99 stones that had fallen down in their original position. In the course of the work, however, the idea arose to rebuild all the stones and replace those that had been lost. So by December 2015 all 99 antique and 22 new stones had been installed. The restored grave was opened to the public on November 6, 2016.

description

The round tomb of Kolones is a round building made of local limestone with an outer diameter of 10.70 m and 3.50 m high. The rotunda was open at the top - so it had no roof. The entrance is in the north. The grave shafts were found in the entrance area directly south of the entrance. In them there were three marble sarcophagi with body burial, but all of them had already been robbed. A cremation grave was found under a sarcophagus . A bronze mirror, bronze tweezers, a black-glazed “salt bowl ” and red-figure ceramic shards were found as grave goods . The finds are exhibited in the Salamis Archaeological Museum . Originally there was a flat mound of clay above each grave, which was covered with a thin layer of plaster. A stone plinth stood in the south of the rotunda. On it was a tombstone in the form of a column, which was flanked on both sides by a lekythos .

Web links

Commons : Round Tomb of Kolones  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Strabo: Geographica , 9,1,9
  2. ^ Pausanias: Travels in Greece , 1,35,3
  3. ↑ 4th-century BC circular funerary in Salamis island restored and is opening to visitors

Coordinates: 37 ° 52 ′ 41.5 "  N , 23 ° 26 ′ 25.8"  E