NEWLY DISCOVERED MYCENAEAN TOMBS COULD BE EVIDENCE OF CLASSLESS SOCIETY

Five chamber tombs were recently opened near Mycenae which date to 1350-1200 BC – the time of the Mycenaean Golden Age. Archaeologists have not yet found any elite burials, despite a wealth of human remains. One of the directors of the excavation project, Professor Angus Smith, discussed the findings recently, noting that the existence of the tombs is “no doubt related to the growth of Mycenae.” The absence of elite burials, though, has been proposed as tentative evidence of an ancient egalitarian society.

The Mycenaeans were known for their rich elite burials. The grave goods discovered at Ayia Sotira, the site of the recently uncovered tombs, were “modest finds.” There is a “distinctly different character to those around Mycenae. The wealthy and very wealthy tombs are missing,” Smith said. Various theories regarding this absence include grave robbing, undiscovered elite burials, and the aforementioned egalitarian society. “It does seem to be a community of agriculturalists who don’t seem to have a clear leader or clear elite mixed in amongst them,” Smith added. “Were they governed by the palace at Mycenae which sort of oversaw them? Or were they removed enough that they had their own system of politics and government but one that didn’t produce clear elites?”

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