369-382

Burial mound at Hagios Athanasios of Thessaloniki : new excavational data

• Τσιμπίδου - Αυλωνίτη, Μαρία

In 1992 the 16th Ephorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities started an effort to formulate the archaeological site between Gefyra and Hagios Athanasios, where a Macedonian tomb with two chambers and a Doric façade, and three big cist-graves of the 3rd century B.C. were found in 1966. The archaeological research in the neighbouring area of the Macedonian tomb yielded a rock-cut sloping path which led to the tomb and a trapezoid «yard» in front ofthe façade (similar yards have been found in the tomb of Hagia Paraskeve and that of Phoinikas in Thessaloniki).The trial trenches, which were carried out in the western part of the big burial mound, revealed that the whole area was part of an extended Archaic and Hellenistic cemetery. Eight 6th-century graves, a looted cist, probably other second half of the 4th century B.C., and another cist-grave which included pottery dated to the first half of the 3rd century B.C. were found there. The Archaic cist-graves yielded rich grave goods and provided evidence on the burial customs, which did not differ much from the contemporary cemeteries of Sindos and Hagia Paraskeve. Iron spears, knives and swords accompanied male burials, while only one Illyrian bronze helmet was discovered. Iron jewellery accompanied female burials and only in three cases gold mouthpieces and a faience aryballos were found. Corinthian vases prevailed in pottery: aryballoi, small kotylai and exaleiptra, which provide chronological criteria for the local pottery which coexisted. A Chian chalice with rich painted decoration of the so-called «Animal Chalice Style», the first intact sample of the group of the elaborate animal chalices of the first half of the 6th century B.C. was found

• History and Archaeology

• Αρχαιολογία

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