GRAVE CIRCLE A

The graves were not looted in antiquity as happened to other monuments such as the latter
(15th12th century BCE) Mycenaean tholoi tombs.[11] The women in the graves were richly
dressed and decorated with various ornaments,[10] such as earrings, necklaces, bands of gold and
silver pins. On the other hand, swords, daggers and arrowheads were found next to the
deceased males and their clothing was trimmed with gold. [7][10] In grave Nu, traces of a boar's tusk
helmet, typical of Mycenaean warfare, were recovered. [1][5]
A death mask of electrum has been also unearthed. However, it wasn't found on the face of the
deceased male, but in a wooden box next to him.[12] On the other hand, the burial costumes
differed from those of Grave Circle A. The latter included death masks of different artistic style
and made of gold, like the Mask of Agamemnon.[11]
Grave Circle A in Mycenae is a 16th-century BC royal cemetery situated to the south of the Lion
Gate, the main entrance of the Bronze Age citadel of Mycenae, southern Greece.[1] This burial
complex was initially constructed outside the fortification walls of Mycenae, but was ultimately
enclosed in the acropolis when the fortifications were extended during the 13th century BC.
[1]

Grave Circle A and Grave Circle B, the latter found outside the walls of Mycenae, represent

one of the major characteristics of the early phase of the Mycenaean civilization.[2]
The circle has a diameter of 27.5 m (90 ft) and contains six shaft graves, where a total of
nineteen bodies were buried. It has been suggested that a mound was constructed over each
grave, and funeral stelaewere erected. Among the objects found were a series of gold death
masks, additionally beside the deceased were full sets of weapons, ornate staffs as well as gold
and silver cups. The site was excavated by the archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann in 1876,
following the descriptions of Homer and Pausanias. One of the gold masks he unearthed
became known as the "The Death Mask of Agamemnon", ruler of Mycenae according to Greek
mythology. However, it has been proved that the burials date circa three centuries earlier,
before Agamemnon is supposed to have lived.
Contents
[hide]

1 Background

2 History

3 Findings

4 Excavations

5 Historical inferences

6 See also

7 References

7.1 Citations

7.2 Sources
8 Further reading

Background[edit]

Model of Mycenae. Grave Circle A is located on the upper left of the main entrance.

During the end of the 3rd millennium BC (circa 2200 BC), the indigenous inhabitants of mainland
Greece underwent a cultural transformation attributed to climate change, local events and
developments (i.e. destruction of the "House of Tiles"), as well as to continuous contacts with
various areas such as western Asia Minor, the Cyclades, Albania, and Dalmatia.[3] These Bronze
Age people were equipped with horses, surrounded themselves with luxury goods, and
constructed elaborate shaft graves.[4] The acropolis of Mycenae, one of the main centers
of Mycenaean culture, located in Argolis, northeast Peloponnese, was built on a defensive hill at
an elevation of 128 m (420 ft) and covers an area of 30,000 m2 (320,000 sq ft).[1] The Shaft
Graves found in Mycenae signified the elevation of a new Greek-speaking royal dynasty whose
economic power depended on long-distance sea trade. [5] Grave Circles A and B, the latter found
outside the walls of Mycenae, represent one of the major characteristics of the early phase of the
Mycenaean civilization.[2]

History[edit]

Gold elliptical diadem, Grave III, (left) and part of a funeral stele depicting a chariot scene (right).

Mycenaean shaft graves are essentially an Argive variant of the rudimentary Middle
Helladic funerary tradition with features derived from Early Bronze Age traditions developed
locally in mainland Greece.[6] Grave Circle A, formed circa 1600 BC as a new elite burial place,
was probably first restricted to men and seems to be a continuation of the earlier Grave Circle
B and correlates with the general social trend of higher burial investment taking place throughout
entire Greece that time.[7] The Grave Circle A site was part of a larger funeral place from the
Middle Helladic period. At the time it was built, during the Late Helladic I (1600 BC),[2] there was
probably a small unfortified palace on Mycenae,[8] while the graves of the Mycenaean ruling
family remained outside of the city walls.[9] There is no evidence of a circular wall around the site
during the period of the burials.[10] The last interment took place circa 1500 BC.[11]
Immediately after the last interment, the local rulers abandoned the shaft graves in favour of a
new and more imposing form of tomb already developing in Messenia, south Peloponessus,
the tholos.[12] Around 1250 BC, when the fortifications of Mycenae were extended, the Grave
Circle was included inside the new wall. A double ring peribolos wall was also built around the
area.[13] It appears that the site became a temenos(sacred precinct), while a circular construction,
possibly an altar was found above one grave.[14] The burial site had been replanned as a
monument, an attempt by the 13th century BC Mycenean rulers to appropriate the possible
heroic past of the older ruling dynasty.[15] Under this context, the land surface was built up to
make a level precinct for ceremonies, with the stelae over the graves being re-erected. A new
entrance, theLion Gate, was constructed near the site.[11]

Findings[edit]

'Mask of Agamemnon' (left) and set of swords (right), Grave V.

Grave Circle A, with a diameter of 27.5 m (90 ft), is situated on the acropolis of Mycenae
southeast of the Lion Gate. The site is surrounded by two rows of slabs, while the space between
the rows was filled with earth and roofed with slabs. The Grave Circle contains six shaft graves,
the smallest of which is measured at 3.0 m by 3.5 m and the largest measured at 4.50 m by 6.40

m (the depth of each shaft grave ranges from 1.0 m to 4.0 m). Over each grave a mound was
constructed and stelae were erected.[16] These stelae had been probably erected in memory of
the Mycenaean rulers buried there; three of them depict chariot scenes.[2]
A total of nineteen bodies eight men, nine women and two children [10] were found in the
shafts, which contained two to five bodies each (with the exception of Grave II, which was a
single burial).[2] Among the findings, boars' tusks were found in Grave IV, as well as five golden
masks in Graves IV and V. One of them, the supposed Mask of Agamemnon, was found in Grave
V. Additionally, gold and silver cups, includingNestor's Cup and the Silver Siege Rhyton, were
found by the side of the deceased. A number of gold rings, buttons and bracelets were also
found.[2] Most of the graves were equipped with full sets of weapons, especially swords, [17] and the
figural depictions of the objects show fighting and hunting scenes.
Many objects were designed to signify the social rank of the deceased, for instance, decorated
daggers, which were objects d'art and cannot be considered real weapons. Ornate staffs as well
as a scepter from Grave IV clearly indicate a very significant status of the deceased. [18] Items
such as bulls' heads with a double axe display clear Minoan influences.[19] At the time that the
Grave Circle was built, the Mycenaeans had not yet conquered Minoan Crete. Although it seems
that they recognized the Minoans as the providers of the finest in design and craftsmanship,
most of the objects decorated in Minoan style and buried in Grave Circle A are not of Minoan but
of indigenous craftsmanship.[20] On the other hand, certain motifs such as fighting and hunting
scenes are clearly of Mycenaean style.[21]
Grave Circle B in Mycenae is a 17th16th century BC royal cemetery situated outside the
late Bronze Age citadel of Mycenae, southern Greece. This burial complex was constructed
outside the fortification walls of Mycenae and together with Grave Circle A represent one of the
major characteristics of the early phase of the Mycenaean civilization.[2]
Contents
[hide]

1 Structure

2 History

3 Findings

4 Excavations

5 Further research

6 References

7 Sources

GRAVE CIRCLE B
Structure[edit]
Grave Circle B, with a diameter of 28 m (92 ft), is situated at a distance of 117 m (384 ft) south of
the Lion Gate, the main entrance of Mycenae.[3] The burial structure was enclosed by a circular
stone wall, 1.55 m (5 ft) thick and 1.20 m (4 ft) high.[1][4] The Circle hosts a total of 26 graves; 14 of
which are shaft graves and the rest simple cists. A total of 24 persons were found in the shafts,[1]
[4]

while six of the shaft graves were family tombs in which several occupants were found. [1]

Most shafts were marked by a pile of stones and on four of them stelae were erected. The latter
were up to 2 m (7 ft) high.[1] Two of the stelae, on graves Alpha and Gamma, were engraved with
hunting scenes.[5]

History[edit]

Death mask made of electrum, shaft grave "Gamma".

Mycenaean shaft graves are essentially an Argive variant of the rudimentary Middle
Helladic funerary tradition with features derived from Early Bronze Age traditions developed
locally in mainland Greece.[6] During the first phase of use of the Grave Circle, the interments
were typical of the burials of that period; they were small and shallow with small and poor goods
found next to the deceased.[7] The graves became gradually larger, richer and more numerous in
goods, while female burials were also introduced. [7] Moreover, diadems were found in both sexes
and in all the age groups buried. The number of ornaments was also considerably increased and
especially associated with female burials. An additional new feature was that half of the graves,
regardless of the sex of the deceased, were equipped with imports from the
nearby Cyclades islands.[7] The number of imports continues to grow steadily in the early Late
Helladic period (ca. 16001550 BCE), while the first objects of Cretan origin make also their
appearance.[8]
At its latest phase of use, more women than men are buried in the Circle, while the male burials
appear to be relatively poor compared to the female ones.[7] Male burials are associated with sets
of tableware, usually drinking vessels and their military force is stressed by weapons of various
types.[7] This points to the emergence of an elite warrior class in Mycenaean society.[7]
Meanwhile, Grave Circle A, a new elite burial place of similar architecture was found nearby,
which seems to be a continuation Circle B.[9] Thus, the latest graves of Circle B (Alpha, Gamma,
Delta, Epsilon and Omikron) were contemporary with the earliest of Circle A. [10]

Findings[edit]

Crystal duck-shaped bowl, shaft grave "Omikron".