Kantia - 2010

Kantia, Property of P. Mallios. Christos Piteros (Δ’ΕΠΚΑ) reports on trial excavations on the NW part of a property within the site of Kantia. Three trenches in a row from E-W were opened. The upper strata had been disturbed by continuous cultivation.

Trench 1: A small cist grave was found (no. 1) with NS orientation and without covering slabs (Fig. 1) and disturbed. Inside, MH III sherds were found (Fig. 2).

Trench 2: Throughout the trench, medium-sized river pebbles were found that had been used in dense arrangement to form part of a circular tomb mound (Fig. 3). The revealed part was most likely the central southern section of the tumulus that continues into Trench 1 and to the north.

Trench 3: Cist grave 2 was found, oriented E-W (Fig. 4). The covering slabs are sandstone, apparently from the prehistoric beach region to the south. Smaller stones were arranged in a row around the covering slabs. Tomb 2 is immediately east of the circular tumulus. Inside the tomb is an adult skeleton, supine, head to the east, without grave goods. There were also a few lower limb bones from an older burial and sherds of the LMH period (Fig. 5). Similar sherds were found in the trench. Similar circular tumuli have been found at Dendra of the MEIII-LHI period and at Asine. These tombs built with circular stonework in the Argolid were in use until the LHI and before the establishment of chamber tombs as monuments. The semi-circular wall around tomb no. 15 (tumulus Γ) does not correspond to the circular stone mound and is related to the chamber tomb.

[Entry created by E. Strazdins]