1. A Late Helladic III tholos tomb and ossuary located near Tzannata, Kefalonia were excavated from 1992-1994 and contained remains of over 150 individuals.
2. Preliminary analysis found evidence of healed trauma, burning, bronze staining, and cut animal bones. Approximately 25% of the remains were of subadults.
3. Future research will compare the remains using analyses like DNA, isotopes, and fauna to learn more about the population's diet, relationships, and migration.
1. A Late Helladic III tholos tomb and ossuary located near Tzannata, Kefalonia were excavated from 1992-1994 and contained remains of over 150 individuals.
2. Preliminary analysis found evidence of healed trauma, burning, bronze staining, and cut animal bones. Approximately 25% of the remains were of subadults.
3. Future research will compare the remains using analyses like DNA, isotopes, and fauna to learn more about the population's diet, relationships, and migration.
1. A Late Helladic III tholos tomb and ossuary located near Tzannata, Kefalonia were excavated from 1992-1994 and contained remains of over 150 individuals.
2. Preliminary analysis found evidence of healed trauma, burning, bronze staining, and cut animal bones. Approximately 25% of the remains were of subadults.
3. Future research will compare the remains using analyses like DNA, isotopes, and fauna to learn more about the population's diet, relationships, and migration.
1. A Late Helladic III tholos tomb and ossuary located near Tzannata, Kefalonia were excavated from 1992-1994 and contained remains of over 150 individuals.
2. Preliminary analysis found evidence of healed trauma, burning, bronze staining, and cut animal bones. Approximately 25% of the remains were of subadults.
3. Future research will compare the remains using analyses like DNA, isotopes, and fauna to learn more about the population's diet, relationships, and migration.
Sociology, Anthropology and Criminology Centre for Forensic Research
University of Windsor Simon Fraser University
The Tholos Tomb and Ossuary at Tzannata, Kefalonia, Greece:
Preliminary Findings and Research Potential By John Albanese Introduction Homeric Ithaca on Kefalonia A Late Helladic III (Mycenaean) Kefalonia has the greatest concentration and largest sites, with tholos tomb and ossuary were over 10 major Late Helladic III Period found in 1991 at Borzi Hill, near the sites (1400 to 1050 BC). There are at modern town of Tzannata on the least three tholos tombs including island of Kefalonia (see map), and the largest tholos tomb on the Ionian excavated from 1992 to 1994. Aside Islands and north-west Peloponnese from a cursory separation of at Borzi Hill, Tzannata. If there was a human and animal bones, the King Odysseus, this is where he skeletal remains were not assessed would have been buried. for their research potential until Left and below: May 2015. The preliminary results Pronounced chin Preliminary Results from this study are presented here. morphology seen in 2 Extrapolating from the 15% of the out of 2 chins examined. remains surveyed, there are about 150 individuals in the sample. There The Tholos Tomb is evidence of healed trauma; A tholos tomb is a beehive-shaped burning (not cremation); bronze structure that was used for the Below: Subadult bones staining; and animal bones with cut burial of elites after 1500 BC. It had miscataloged as animal marks. About 25% of the sample one or more shafts or cysts that bones. consists of subadults ranging in age were lined with stone slabs. Bodies from under one year to late teens. Several individuals have a distinctive were placed in a cyst until there chin morphology, as well as shoveled was complete decomposition of lateral incisors and metopic sutures soft tissues or until the cyst, which as seen in several individuals from was continually reused, was Gravel Circle A Shaft V including the needed again. This tholos tomb was Above: Seal stone “Mask of Agamemnon” at Mycenae. from ossuary. “King built in 1350 BC after the previous Odysseus… was smaller tomb collapsed. The smaller wearing… a golden Future Research tomb was first built in 1450 BC. The brooch…a hound The remains from the tholos tomb Above: Tholos Tomb, Borzi Hill, clenching a dappled last internment in the tomb took fawn in its front and ossuary at Tzannata, chamber Tzannata. Profile reconstruction place after 900 BC, more than 200 showing beehive corbelled vault and paws slashing at it as tombs at Tzannata and chamber years after the Mycenaean collapse main cyst (top); entrance (stomion) it writhed… the tombs at Voudeni (see map) will be on the Peloponnese. visible at the end of passage hound slashed, compared using multiple lines of (dromos) after excavation (middle); throttling the fawn in evidence including: gross skeletal interior view with three cysts as it death throes, hoofs flailing to break analysis of adults and subadults; DNA The Ossuary appears now (bottom). free.” (Odyssey Book analysis for familial relationships; The ossuary at Tzannata was 19 Lines 259-267). stable isotope analysis for constructed outside the tholos Below: Miniature reconstruction of diet and migration; tomb as a large cyst with slab stone Above: Well-healed trauma gold axe from and faunal analysis. ossuary. walls and a pebble floor; and was on left eye orbit. Acknowledgments used for secondary burial after Left: Cut marks on a goat(?) Thanks to Dr Lazaros Kolonas, Henriette Putman Cramer, humerus at left and goat(?) Gerasimos Metaxas, Dr John Pierce, Jan Pierce, Dr Lynne removal of bones from the cyst in femur(?) at right. Bradley. Images of bones are by the author; other images the tholos tomb. were taken from “Homer’s Ithaca” Blog (Cramer and Metaxas).