|
|
| The First Art Newspaper on the Net |
   |
Established in 1996 |
|
Saturday, September 20, 2025 |
|
| Paintings discovered at the highly-decorated tomb from the time of Alexander the Great |
|
|
Katerina Peristeri, the head of the archaeological excavation at the Kasta Tomb in Amphipolis, arrives on November 22, 2014, near the site where archaeologists have unearthed a funeral mound dating from the time of the ancient Greek leader Alexander the Great, in northern Greece. Paintings of everyday life were discovered on the columns of the largest ancient tomb ever found in Greece, in Amphipolis in the region of Macedonia, the Greek Culture Minister Kostas Tassoulas said. These paintings could be used to help discover the identity of the mysterious dead buried in the tomb, whose bones were found earlier this month. AFP PHOTO /Sakis Mitrolidis.
|
THESSALONIKI (AFP).- Paintings of daily life have been discovered on columns at Greece's biggest ancient tomb at Amphipolis in the northern region of Macedonia, the Greek culture ministry said Saturday.
"After cleaning the columns, images of people, objects and utensils were uncovered," Culture Minister Kostas Tassoulas said at a press briefing on the discovery at the site.
The paintings may help solve the mystery of who is buried at the highly-decorated tomb from the time of Alexander the Great. A skeleton was found at the site earlier this month.
"We will have the first indications (about the identity) after the bones are examined at an anthropological laboratory," said Lisa Mendoni, a top official at the culture ministry.
Archeologists had to dig their way past huge decapitated sphinxes, break through a wall guarded by two caryatids and empty out an antechamber decorated with stunning mosaics to finally find the tomb's occupant.
The culture ministry said on November 12 the remains were clearly those of "a powerful personality, which can be seen from this unique tomb", with speculation rife that it could be that of Roxana, Alexander's Persian wife, his mother Olympias, or one of his generals.
Whoever was buried at the massive fourth-century BC structure, historians say it is highly unlikely to have been Alexander himself, who conquered the Persian empire and much of the known world before his death at the age of 32.
A team from the University of Thessaloniki plans to use three-dimensional tomographic imagery to search the area for other tombs.
The latest discoveries at the Amphipolis tomb site -- half a kilometre (0.3 mile) in circumference -- have boosted tourism to the region.
"The number of visitors to the Amphipolis museum has increased considerably. On recent weekends more than 1,500 people have come to the sites," said Tassoulas.
The archeologist in charge of the dig, Katerina Peristeri, is set to hold a press conference about the discoveries on November 29 in Athens.
© 1994-2014 Agence France-Presse
|
|
|
|
|
Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week,  . |
|
|
|
Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:
|
|
|
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful
|
|
