Studia Palmyreńskie (12.2013)

Kiyohtde Saito

first (Nakahashi 1994). The grave goods, which accompanied this burial, included a bronze mirror,
seven glass vessels and a leather Container. The second case was a double burial in loculus ENL1-0
of To mb F: a young girl with grave goods interred before an old man. It is not elear why these two
young females were buried with old men. Grave goods represented deep emotional attachment,
but, at this stage, we have no way of knowing whether this attachment derived from family rela-
tions, individual character or circumstances of death.

In the four tombs excavated in the Southeast Necropolis only four burials, those of young girls
in loculi NL4-0 and SL1-1 of Tomb H and those of young girls in loculi ML1-0 of Tomb C and
ENL1-0 of Tomb F, were accompanied by numerous grave goods. Only 13% of the identified fe~
małe burials wore accessories; in all cases they were young and accompanied by numerous other
grave goods.

Another aspect of female burials were the stone slabs placed on the abdomen. This occurred
in loculus EL6-0 of Tomb F, where the lowermost burial was of an adult woman, 20 to 39 years
old, wearing a gold pendant, laid on her back with her head to the back wali of the loculus. Two
stone slabs rested on her abdomen. As this loculus was completely packed and had not been dis-
turbed, there can be no doubt that the Stones were placed intentionally at the time of burial. They
must reflect some negative emotions with regard to the woman buried in EF6-0. Placing stone
slabs on the abdomen could have been meant to prevent natural female reproduction, possibly
impurity and defilement against her body after her death. The stones may have been intended to
prevent an evil spirit from escaping the body. Perhaps the woman had died of some repugnant
sickness, which however left no pathological changes on the bones. In any case, the slabs on the
abdomen are a specific feature of female funeral practices in Palmyra.

5. Female burial status in the Southeast Necropolis

It has been observed that sex had no determinative function regarding the position of the body —
all the deceased buried in the tombs of the Southeast Necropolis, regardless of sex, were placed
with their heads to the back wali of the burial niche (Saito 201 Ob). The loculi were intended for ei-
ther single or multiple burials, but multiple burials were morę common.

Table 1. Total number of burials from the four underground tombs in the Southeast Necropolis and their
breakdown by categories ofsex and age

Tomb

Total

Małe

Female

Over one
year old

Under one
year old

Unidentified

Tomb C

61

30

13

13

5

-

Tomb F

87

31

24

23

9

-

Tomb E

36

5

8

7

3

13

Tomb H

133

35

32

44

14

8

Tomb 36

84

21

23

39

-

1

The proportions of małe to female burials varied from tomb to tomb [ Table 1]. Of the 61 adult
burials in Tomb C, 43 were identified to sex; 30 of these were males and 13 females. Children over
one year old counted 12 in all and were buried in the loculi and sarcophagi. Five infants under 12
months of age and one five-year-old were buried in pit graves cut in the floor of the burial cham-
ber. In Tomb F, 55 of 87 skeletons could be sexed, the proportion of małe to female being 31 to 24.
All of the 23 older children were interred in loculi and sarcophagi, whereas nine infants were
buried in pit graves in the floor of the burial chamber. Three of 36 burials in Tomb E had been de-
posited in pit graves in the floor; of the others, 13 adult skeletons could not be sexed, while five
turned out to be małe and eight female. Seven children aged over one year old were also identified.
The breakdown by sex of the sexually determined burials from Tomb H, where the total count of

290

Studia Palmyreńskie XII