DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.808#0003
'THE KING OF NESTOR': A GLIMPSE INTO THE MINOAN
AFTER-WORLD .
AND
A SEPULCHRAL TREASURE OF GOLD SIGNET-RINGS AND BEAD-SEALS
FROM THISB£, BOEOTIA
PART I
Sepulchral Treasure of Gold Signet-rings and Bead-seals
FROM ThISBE, BOEOTIA.
The first subject of the present communication is a truly royal treasure
of gold rings and of bead-seals in the same metal found in a Mycenaean rock
tomb near the site of Thisbe in Boeotia. The find was made in 1915, at a time
when war conditions diverted the course of discovery from official channels,
and a fortunate chain of circumstances now enables me not only to describe
but to exhibit to the Society the whole hoard. Under the circumstances
it is impossible without a.breach of confidence to give all the details, but,
from what I have been able to ascertain, the discovery was made by a peasant
in a chamber-tomb excavated in the rock, by the village of Dombrena.
Near this spot, about a quarter of an hour N.W. of Kakosi, on the Akropolis
height of Thisbe, Mr. W. A. Heurtley, of the British School at Athens, kindly
informs me that he was shown, in an olive grove, three chamber-tombs with
clromai. He adds, ' The old man who showed me had dug one completely
and found a dagger and vases and some sherds, all of which he had lost.'
Mr. Heurtley adds, however, that, from a drawing that the old man made of
one of the vases, it is clear that it was a stirrup-vase of late type.
Other objects that I myself was able either to see or secure, found in the
same group of tombs, but not authenticated as coming from the chamber
containing the treasure, were bronze spear-heads and a short sword with the
flange running round the extremity of the hilt, belonging to a very late
Mycenaean type.1 A bronze razor also occurred of an advanced form and, of
still later date presumably, a small perforated double-axe head of iron. There
were also found a whole set of perforated glass-paste objects with holes below
for the attachment of pendant gold disks which Mr. Wace has now conclusively
shown to belong to necklaces. The particular type found, as well as certain
paste pendants with reliefs covered with gold foil, belongs to the date of the
Dimini jewels, or early L.M. III. 6, in Minoan terms. There is no difficulty
in ascribing the radiated glazed clay beads (Eig. 1, a) and the bugle bead of
kyanos blue paste (Eig. 1, d), as well as the plated faience plaques with groups
of palms in relief (Fig. 1, Tc), to the same epoch.
On the other hand, a miniature oenochoe of rock crystal with its handle
perforated for suspension (Fig. 1, g) has a much earlier history, one very similar
1 A single example of this type was 1904, p. 29). In Mainland Greece they
found in the Zafer Papoura Cemetery at are of frequent occurrence; see Naue, Die
Knossos (Prehistoric Tombs of Knossos, Vorromischen Schwerter, p. 10, Taj. v. 3;
PI. XCI. Fig. 109, 95 e), and others in the Tsountas, '£«>. 'AM., 1897, PI. VIII. 4
very late interment of Muliana (:E<p. 'Apx-, (Mycenae).
J.H.S.—VOL. XLV. B
AFTER-WORLD .
AND
A SEPULCHRAL TREASURE OF GOLD SIGNET-RINGS AND BEAD-SEALS
FROM THISB£, BOEOTIA
PART I
Sepulchral Treasure of Gold Signet-rings and Bead-seals
FROM ThISBE, BOEOTIA.
The first subject of the present communication is a truly royal treasure
of gold rings and of bead-seals in the same metal found in a Mycenaean rock
tomb near the site of Thisbe in Boeotia. The find was made in 1915, at a time
when war conditions diverted the course of discovery from official channels,
and a fortunate chain of circumstances now enables me not only to describe
but to exhibit to the Society the whole hoard. Under the circumstances
it is impossible without a.breach of confidence to give all the details, but,
from what I have been able to ascertain, the discovery was made by a peasant
in a chamber-tomb excavated in the rock, by the village of Dombrena.
Near this spot, about a quarter of an hour N.W. of Kakosi, on the Akropolis
height of Thisbe, Mr. W. A. Heurtley, of the British School at Athens, kindly
informs me that he was shown, in an olive grove, three chamber-tombs with
clromai. He adds, ' The old man who showed me had dug one completely
and found a dagger and vases and some sherds, all of which he had lost.'
Mr. Heurtley adds, however, that, from a drawing that the old man made of
one of the vases, it is clear that it was a stirrup-vase of late type.
Other objects that I myself was able either to see or secure, found in the
same group of tombs, but not authenticated as coming from the chamber
containing the treasure, were bronze spear-heads and a short sword with the
flange running round the extremity of the hilt, belonging to a very late
Mycenaean type.1 A bronze razor also occurred of an advanced form and, of
still later date presumably, a small perforated double-axe head of iron. There
were also found a whole set of perforated glass-paste objects with holes below
for the attachment of pendant gold disks which Mr. Wace has now conclusively
shown to belong to necklaces. The particular type found, as well as certain
paste pendants with reliefs covered with gold foil, belongs to the date of the
Dimini jewels, or early L.M. III. 6, in Minoan terms. There is no difficulty
in ascribing the radiated glazed clay beads (Eig. 1, a) and the bugle bead of
kyanos blue paste (Eig. 1, d), as well as the plated faience plaques with groups
of palms in relief (Fig. 1, Tc), to the same epoch.
On the other hand, a miniature oenochoe of rock crystal with its handle
perforated for suspension (Fig. 1, g) has a much earlier history, one very similar
1 A single example of this type was 1904, p. 29). In Mainland Greece they
found in the Zafer Papoura Cemetery at are of frequent occurrence; see Naue, Die
Knossos (Prehistoric Tombs of Knossos, Vorromischen Schwerter, p. 10, Taj. v. 3;
PI. XCI. Fig. 109, 95 e), and others in the Tsountas, '£«>. 'AM., 1897, PI. VIII. 4
very late interment of Muliana (:E<p. 'Apx-, (Mycenae).
J.H.S.—VOL. XLV. B