A loop with a tale

Look at this loop. It is one of the grave goods that was found between the fingers of a deceased infant, who was buried in a tomb. From the upper part of the loop you can see how wafer-thin this material is; it is not rigid, but has some flexibility, enabling it to be used as a thread.

The infant who held this between its fingers was buried together with a woman (approximately 25-35 years old), who was likely a priestess. It was placed upon the chest of the woman, a posture usually indicating that of a mother and child. However, in this case the infant was presumably the successor of the priestess, because of its placement upon her chest, and the many grave goods that were buried with it.Konstantinidi-Syvridi, E. (2018). “Mycenae, Shaft Grave III. Tomb of the High Priestess?”, Journal of Prehistoric Religion 26:50-57. In this article, it is suggested that the infant was the successor of this priestess. Unfortunately, it is still unclear whether the infant was a boy or a girl. A gold diadem was found close to the infant’s head and on the chest of the priestess (Fig. 1). Other objects were found alongside it: a model triton of faience, which was used in rituals to invoke a god or goddess, earrings, a gold cladding which was placed upon the infant’s body (Fig. 2), and, of course, this gold balance.

In the next step we tell you more about this gold balance. But do you first want to delve deeper into the archeological site of this tomb? Check out the long read below!