The prehistoric Cemetery at Aigai

Aigai (Vergina)

	The Palace
	The small palace
	The theatre
	The city of Aigai
	The prehistoric Cemetery
	The Great Tumulus
	The tombs north of the palace
	The Palatitsia tombs

Images on this page

	Bronze spectacle-fibula
Bronze spectacle fibula from a woman's grave in the prehistoric tumuli cemetery, Vergina, second half of 9th century BC, Thessaloniki, Archaeological Museum.

	Bronze stippled crown
Bronze crown with stippled solar symbol, from a woman's grave in the prehistoric tumuli cemetery, Vergina, circa 900 BC, Thessaloniki, Archaeological Museum.

	Bronze triple double-axe
Bronze triple double-axe from a woman's grave in the prehistoric tumuli cemetery, Vergina, first half of 9th century BC, Thessaloniki, Archaeological Museum.

The prehistoric Cemetery at Aigai

Bronze stippled crown
Vergina, circa 900 BC

Bronze triple double-axe
Vergina, first half of 9th century BC

The prehistoric Cemetery of the Tumuli, situated east of the village of Vergina, covers an area of about 250 acres containing more than 300 small burial mounds or tumuli. It was in use from the early Iron Age (1000-700 BC) until the Hellenistic period (up to the 2nd century BC).

In the prehistoric mounds the dead were buried directly in the earth, in oblong shafts radiating outward from a common center. For the men the funeral offerings were weapons, and for the women rich jewellery and numerous vessels. It is probable that the groups of tumuli belonged to different clans, while each tumulus belonged to a particular family.

Bronze spectacle-fibula
Second half of 9th century BC

See Also

Civilization - Graves in Antiquity

Macedonian Heritage
Content courtesy Ekdotike Athenon S.A.