Microstratigraphic and Geochemical Contributions to the Study of the Burial Practices and Taphonomy of the Mycenaean Shaft Grave of the ‘Griffin Warrior’, Pylos, Greece

Summary

Results of a microstratigraphic and geochemical approach are presented here in reference to study of the Mycenaean ‘Griffin Warrior’ shaft grave at ancient Pylos. Soil and sediment micromorphology are used to address questions concerning the preparation of the tomb, the mode of corpse deposition, and taphonomy of the burial. Processes and activities such as the preparation and configuration of the floor and other earthen constructions inside the tomb are considered, as well as the rapidity of episodes of backfilling both through human and natural agency. Overall, a microcontextual approach has revealed a more complicated burial history than recognized by field observations alone. Furthermore, the identification of neoformed minerals and their chemistry has enabled the detection of degradation products of human body tissue and probably also that of some of the associated cultural objects. The genesis of these minerals reflects the sequence of the opening and filling of the tomb and their identification, therefore, contributes to a more informed reconstruction of the history of the burial. The discovery of such chemical traces has important implications for their future identification in graves and our ability to distinguish between primary and secondary burials.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 20704