Mycenæ: a narrative of researches and discoveries at Mycenæ and TirynsSchliemann, Heinrich
History
Mycenæ: a narrative of researches and discoveries at Mycenæ and Tiryns
Schliemann, Heinrich
Mycenae (Extinct city); Tiryns (Extinct city)
I further collected in this tomb a large quantity of oyster-shells and
many entire oysters, which had never been opened, from which I conclude
that, as in the funeral customs of ancient Egypt, food was laid in the
tombs of the deceased. There was found in this sepulchre, as well as
in all the other tombs, a large quantity of broken pottery, on seeing
which, Mr. Panagiotes Eustratiades, Director-General of Antiquities,
reminded me of the habit still existing in Greece, of breaking vases
filled with water on the tombs of departed friends. Mr. Eustratiades also
mentioned to me that copper kettles and vases were the great ornaments
of the houses, not only in antiquity, but throughout all the Middle Ages
until the Greek revolution. This is, so far, very well; but, except these
Mycenean sepulchres, the cemetery of Hallstatt, and the tombs of Corneto
and Palestrina, we have not yet found an example to prove that they
served to ornament the abodes of the dead.
One handle of a hand-made vase found in this tomb particularly attracted
my attention by its six perforations, one of which was large enough for
a thick string to pass through, and it may, therefore, have served for
suspension; but the other five would be too small even for a fine thread,
and they can, therefore, never have served for suspension, and I suppose
they were merely used to put flowers in, as an ornament.
[Sidenote: BONES FROM THE TOMBS.]
Of the bones of the five bodies of this tomb, as well as of those of the
bodies in the other sepulchres, I collected all which were not too much
decayed, and they will be exhibited in the National Museum at Athens
together with the treasures. Of course the contents of each sepulchre are
to be kept separate. I give here an engraving of only the best-preserved
jaw (No. 450), with thirteen well-preserved teeth; three only are missing.
There were further found two broken alabaster vases, and a pedestal
of alabaster to stand vases on, besides a very large quantity of
fragments of hand-made or very ancient wheel-made pottery. To the former
category belongs a vase, which has been wrought to a lustrous surface
by hand-polishing. It has had two handles, but only one is preserved.
Another vase is a beautiful specimen of the most ancient Mycenean
wheel-made pottery. It has four handles, and on a light yellow dead
ground an ornamentation of dark-red colour representing spirals, circular
bands, and circles, filled with a network of lines.
[Illustration: No. 450. Human Jawbone. Sepulchre IV. Size 3:4.]
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