POROS - Herakleion - 2002

Poros, Herakleion. N. Dimopoulou-Rethemiotakis (Herakleion Museum) reports the discovery, in the course of public works, of a Neo-Palatial chamber tomb at Poros, one of 10 from the centre of the known cemetery of the Minoan settlement. These tombs (usually 80–90m2) have an antechamber and a succession of burial chambers, with pillars of bedrock supporting the roof, and small pits or cists containing material from earlier burials. The dead were set on wooden beds and biers. The tombs date from MM III (with a little MM II) to late LM IB.

The new tomb is the smallest yet found (55m2): it has an irregular chamber with a side niche. No undisturbed burial could be found: heaps of tumbled bones were pushed to the walls. Nonetheless, surviving grave goods included fine pottery, an oval ivory plaque depicting a wrestling match (?), and three pieces of jewellery (two gold signet rings with epiphany scenes, and a miniature pendant amulet (Fig. 1) in the form of a basket with its lid, with intaglio spirals between bands and slashes at the rim and handle representing the fibrous wrappings).