PATRAS - North Cemetery - 2001

Patras, north cemetery. Thermopylon and Archiepiskopou Makariou Streets (Giannopoulou and Angelopoulou property). G. Alexopoulou (Στ’ ΕΠΚΑ) reports the discovery of a 14m-long stretch of the cobbled funerary road which ran north-south through the centre of the cemetery, and continued outside the city as the via publica to Aigion and Corinth. It is the continuation of the sections previous found on the property of AV Vasilopoulos to the north and 42 Thermopylon Street to the south (ADelt 49 [1994] Chr 223; 50 [1995] Chr 213-15).

A Late Roman funerary peribolos lay 10.2m south of the road. Inside it, in the northwest corner was a chamber, with traces of a second or another peribolos wall on its south side. A destruction deposit lay beside the long walls. Thirteen tombs were found, including tile graves (of Lakonian type tiles) and cists. No consistent orientation was observed.

Tomb I: a tile grave outside the peribolos, east of the road, contained two supine inhumations with a glass candlestick unguentarium and a provincial Roman bronze coin.

Tomb II: a tile grave south of the peribolos containing the supine inhumation of a child, with light burning on the lower extremities. No grave goods.

Tomb III: a damaged tile grave outside the peribolos, east of the road, contained no bones but part of a terracotta lachrymaterion.

Tomb IV: a brick-built cist inside the peribolos (built into the peribolos walls), with a tiled floor and built headrest: the interior was disturbed and contained no bones. Two lamps outside the grave comprised one first-century AD type, and one with an Italian-inspired gladiator scene, of the second half of the second century AD.

Tomb V: a brick-built cist inside the peribolos, south of tomb IV, with a tiled floor and built headrest, contained no bones but a lachrymaterion and a bronze coin.

Tomb VI: a brick-built cist with tile cover, south of the peribolos, with a tiled floor and built headrest. Bones (one cranium and infra-cranial remains) were heaped in the northwest corner, and in the southeast corner were a first-century AD two-handled cup and a bronze coin of Patras dating to the reign of Domitian.

Tomb VII: a badly damaged cist inside the peribolos, preserving part of the tiled floor but no bones or offerings.

Tomb VIII: a tile grave inside the peribolos containing a single supine inhumation with no goods.

Tomb IX: a tile grave inside the peribolos containing a single supine inhumation with no goods.

Tomb X: a tile grave inside the peribolos contained no burial or goods.

Tomb XI: a tile grave inside the peribolos containing two supine inhumations (heads to east and west respectively) with no goods.

Tomb XII: a tile grave inside the peribolos containing one supine inhumation and the cranium of a second by the north side: no goods.

Tomb XIII: a tile grave inside the peribolos contained no burial or goods.

In addition, eight ash urns (mostly stamnoi with a few amphorae) were found at greater depth and are thus earlier. All but one were inside pits: the exception was set inside an amphora together with a cooking pot lid.

A further structure with a layer of fieldstones (TX8) was found at a depth of 4m (1.4m below the peribolos foundation) founded in sediment. Further layers of sediment, sand and gravel above the building and below the peribolos foundation indicate later flooding. Over the structure, in two hollows close to its north end, were groups of broken Protogeometric vases. These include a large pithoid krater (0.555m high without the base), plus at least two more vessels. Large quantities of Protogeometric sherds were also found over the surface of the structure.