17.12.16

Derveni, Thessaloniki

Derveni( Necropolis at Derveni)

Archaeological site, Cultural heritage THESSALONIKI , MAKEDONIA CENTRAL , GREECE
Derveni, 54500 THESSALONIKI , MAKEDONIA CENTRAL , GREECE

Derveni (Greek: Δερβένι) is a location between Efkarpia and Lagyna, approximately ten kilometers north-east of Thessaloniki. At Derveni an archeological site is located where a necropolis was discovered, part of a cemetery of the ancient city of Lete. Valuable artifacts were uncovered at this site, including the Derveni papyrus and Derveni krater.

A necropole of Ancient Lete. Six tombs, pit graves, cist tombs, and one built of Macedonian type were discovered by chance in 1962 in the region around Derveni, 10 klm. NW of Thessaloniki.

Some of them were unlooted. They contained male and female cremations and burials with rich offerings, dated to the last quarter of the 4th century BC.

The offerings were luxurious metal, clay and glass vases, gold jewellery, iron weapons and bronze strigilis. Tomb A and B are the most important ones, recent archaeological research at the same hill, brought to light some other significant tombs.

Tomb A: cist tomb. It contained a bronze crater with the ashes of the dead, gold wreath, several bronze vases, iron srearheads. A papyrous with an orphic text was found burnt in the thick layer of ashes which was brought here from the cremation pyre and covered the slabs of the tomb.

Τomb B: the most significant in size and rich in offerings cist tomb was constructed in order to accept the ashes of a man and a young woman. For this, a bronze crater with dionysian scenes, unique in the history of art, was used. In the cist tomb twenty silver vases have also been found together with many bronze and alabaster vases, pottery, iron weapons and fragments of a leather corselet. Other finds include a pair of bronze greaves and a gold triobol of Philip II.