The grave of two people, probably a married couple – a man and a woman, in which the remains of three gold necklaces were found, was explored in Metsamor in Armenia by a Polish-Armenian group of archaeologists. It goes back to the time when Ramesses II ruled Egypt.
Metsamor is one of the most famous archaeological sites in Armenia, located a few dozen kilometers west of Yerevan.
It was a box grave. This means that two skeletons were found in chambers sunk into the ground, framed by large stones. The researchers also found the remains of a wooden grave bed.
Archaeologists have described that the bones are well preserved. Both skeletons had slightly shrunken legs. According to preliminary estimates, the couple died at the age of 30-40 years.
“The death of these people is a mystery to us, we don’t know the cause, but everything points to the fact that they died at the same time because there is no trace of the re-opening of the tomb,” said the head of the study, Prof. Krzysztof Jakubiak from the Faculty of Archeology at the University of Warsaw. This is a joint project of the Center for Mediterranean Archeology of Warsaw University and the Department of Antiquities and National Heritage Protection of Armenia. From the Armenian side, the project is headed by prof. Ashot Piliposyan (The man who wanted to destroy Karahunj. Notes by Art-A-Tsolum).
Prof. Yakubyak believes that this is a unique find because the grave was not plundered and is very richly equipped.
The tomb dates from the late Late Bronze Age (1300-1200 BC). Around the same time, the famous pharaoh Ramses II the Great ruled Egypt. Inside the tomb, archaeologists found more than a hundred beads and gold pendants. Some of them are a bit like Celtic crosses. There were also dozens of carnelian pendants.
“Probably, all these elements made up three necklaces,” says Prof. Yakubiak.
The grave also contained about a dozen full pottery vessels and a unique faience flask. However, it is not locally produced. It was brought from the Syrian-Mesopotamian border, scientists have established.
Prof. Yakubiak said that today in the huge necropolis, which is probably about 100 hectares, about 100 graves have been examined, but only a few of them have not been looted.
According to scientists, the graves in this cemetery were in the form of mounds – stone boxes were covered with a large amount of earth. However, almost no traces of the embankments have survived to our times.
Archaeologists do not know who at that time – in the second half of the 2nd millennium – lived in Metsamor. The people who inhabited the large fortified settlement were not literate, so they left no texts. This makes identification difficult for scientists.
“But it was a big settlement. Even fortifications made of huge stone blocks, encircling the so-called citadel, have survived to our times. At the end of the 2nd millennium BC. e. there was no settlement in the region that could be compared in rank and size,” says prof. Yakubiak.
Metsamor is a protected archaeological site with the status of an archaeological reserve. Excavations have been carried out in the area since 1965.
During its heyday from the 4th to the 2nd millennium BC. the settlement occupied more than 10 hectares and was surrounded by cyclopean walls. In the early Iron Age from the 11th to the 9th centuries, Metsamor grew to almost 100 hectares. The central part in the form of a fortress was surrounded by temple complexes with seven sanctuaries. At that time it was one of the most important cultural and political centers of the Araks valley. The place was continuously inhabited until the 17th century.
From the 8th century BC e. Metsamor was part of the Ararat kingdom – the biblical Ararat kingdom. The conquest was made by King Argishti I. It was during his reign that the borders of the state expanded to Transcaucasia, to the region of today’s Yerevan. Polish archaeologists have discovered damage from this period in previous years.
The last research season took place in September and October 2022. The Poles have been excavating in Metsamor since 2013 under an agreement with the Institute of Archeology of the Armenian Academy of Sciences and the Armenian Ministry of Culture (PAP).
Science in Poland, Szymon Zdzieblowski
Source: naukawpolsce.pl
