Archaeologists' “find of the century”

Press, 15 December 1977, Page 21

Archaeologists' “find of the century”

Archaeologists have made what may well be the find of the century in northern Greece — the tomb of Philip of Macedon, father of Alexander the Great. The news was broken by Maria Karvia, a reporter of the Athens daily newspaper, "Kathimerini.” She says that a team from the University of Salonika, headed by a well-known archaeologist, Manolis Andonikos, has discovered what is thought to be the royal grave at a small village called Vergina, 12 miles from the town of Veroia. The find, which has been kept a close secret, was made when archaeological excavators at the village stumbled on A strongly-built structure. They made a hole through which they were able to descend into the major chamber of a domed tomb with a height of five metres. Miss Karvia says that it is not the first time archaeologists have encountered structures in this area. In 1855, the archaeologist, Leon Heuzem, lo-

cated a Hellenistic palace. From 1937 onwards another archaeologist, Constantine Romeos, worked in the area and discovered a Macedonian tomb with a marble throne. A British archaeologist, N. G. L. Hammond, published the theory that Vergina might well be the site of the ancient Macedonian capital, Aiges. It was in this village that Philip of Macedon was murdered by one of his entourage on the eve of a military expedition in 336 BC. According to “Kathimerini,” a large wall painting, with a hunting scene, was the first intimation to the archaeologists that the tomb had been hermetically sealed for perhaps 2300 years. In the centre of the tomb they found a vertical sarcophagus and many silver vases of high craftsmanship. Before they opened the sarcophagus, they telephoned the authorities in Athens; and in the first available plane came a team of technicians and experts in preserving archaeological finds. The

team and a group of scientists from Salonika University conferred with Professor Andonikos on how to get the objects out safely. The specialists believe they were confronted with a miracle that could overturn many accepted historical theories about the period, because inside the sarcophagus was a sculptured box of solid gold weighing five kilogrammes and containing bones which had been carefully washed and placed in position. On top of these bones was a wreath made of gold. Two other objects — a shield and a breastplate — found nearby, indicate that the person buried was clearly a warrior. Another object, looking like a sceptre but still difficult to disengage from the surrounding dirt and rubble, is said to strengthen the view that the grave was a royal one. The shield is an object of marvellous workmanship decorated with bone, glass, gold, and leather. But the grave is still far from revealing all

its secrets; it stands in the centre of a village street and excavations present problems. The doorway between the main chamber and the entry room (prothalama) is cracked, with the danger that anyone entering the chamber might be crushed by the weight of earth above. It is believed that in this entry will be found indications of the identity of the dead person — and whether he was royal or not. The most valuable finds from the tomb have already been transferred to the archaeological museum at Salonika, to be cleaned and studied. But what is exercising specialists on the site is how, in a very short time, they can complete foundation and drainage work in order to allow excavations to continue. There is also the problem of how to preserve the finds — more than two millennia old — from damage when they come into contact with the atmosphere. — By Andrew Wilson, “Observer,” London.