The Spectacular Tombs of Mycenae [7:15]

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· Introduction
0:00 · Mycenae, namesake and showplace of the
0:04 · civilization that dominated Greece in
0:06 · the late Bronze Age, has been famous
0:08 · since antiquity for the tombs of its
0:10 · rulers. We know little about these
0:13 · people beyond what archaeology can tell
0:15 · us. In the home epics, Agamemnon, Lord
0:20 · of Mycenae, is leader of the Greeks of
0:22 · Troy, famous for the wealth of his
0:24 · lands.
0:26 · This may represent a faint memory of
0:28 · Mycenae's actual prominence in the late
0:30 · Bronze Age when the city's rulers seem
0:33 · to have dominated a more or less loose
0:35 · confederation that covered most of the
0:38 · pelpines and eventually conquered Mauan.
0:44 · The Mycenaeans exploded into prominence
0:47 · around 1500 BC when some combination of
0:51 · trade and dealings with Crete and Egypt
0:54 · allowed a previously unremarkable
0:56 · warrior aristocracy to become enormously
0:59 · wealthy. This wealth was on display in
1:02 · the tombs built in and around the
1:04 · Acropolis of Mycenae which we are now
1:07 · entering.
· Grave Circle A
1:10 · Just inside the Lion Gate is grave
1:12 · circle A. The shaft tombs here dated to
1:16 · the 16th century BC at the beginning of
1:19 · Mycenae's days of glory. Originally, they
1:22 · lay outside the citadel. They were only
1:24 · brought inside in the 13th century BC
1:27 · during the final extension of the walls.
1:30 · Over the intervening centuries, however,
1:33 · their location was never forgotten. Once
1:35 · they were enclosed inside the new walls,
1:38 · a ring of horizontal limestone slabs
1:40 · still partially in situ was built around
1:43 · them.
1:45 · When Heinrich Schliemann uncovered graves
1:48 · in 1876,
1:50 · he was convinced he had discovered the
1:51 · remains of Agamemnon and his companions
1:54 · murdered by Clytemnestra and Aegisthus after
1:57 · the Trojan War. He was wrong. The graves
2:00 · are centuries earlier than any plausible
2:02 · date for the Trojan War. But the finds
2:04 · in the tombs were spectacular. There
2:07 · were six tombs with between one and five
2:09 · bodies in each, a total of 15 burials.
2:13 · The bones of the individuals buried here
2:15 · were well preserved, in one case by a
2:18 · quirk of soil conditions, even the flesh
2:20 · and hair. The grave goods were
2:22 · spectacular, weapons, jewelry, a silver
2:25 · ron, and golderary masks.
· Grave Circle B
2:30 · After the last shaft in Grave Circle A
2:32 · was dug, the royal family of Mycenae
2:35 · moved on to even more spectacular Tholos
2:37 · tombs all outside the citadel. Before we
2:40 · explore these, a brief word about grave
2:43 · Circle B, which was partially
2:45 · obliterated by one of those tholos tombs.
2:48 · Unlike Grave Circle A, which was
2:50 · carefully preserved, Grave Circle B was
2:53 · ignored by the rulers of Mycenae's
2:55 · golden age. Presumably those buried here
2:58 · belonged to a different dynasty. The
3:00 · graves here are older than those in
3:02 · Circle A. In fact, they predate the Mian
3:05 · apogee by about a half century, having
3:07 · been dug in the 17th century BC. The
3:10 · goods in most the 25 graves discovered
3:12 · here were relatively modest, though
3:15 · gold, ivory, and rock crystal attested
3:18 · to trade and warfare that would soon
3:20 · make the Masonans very rich.
· Tomb of Clytemnestra
3:24 · Just beside Grave Circle A is the
3:26 · so-called tomb of Clytemnestra. The
3:29 · conventional name comes from a later
3:31 · tradition recorded by Palscanius that
3:34 · Clytemnestra and Aegisthus, the murderers of
3:37 · Agamemnon, were not thought worthy of
3:39 · being buried within the walls. In
3:41 · reality, of course, we have no idea who
3:44 · was buried here. This is the latest of
3:46 · the nine tholos tombs at Mycenae, all of
3:49 · which date to the last two centuries of
3:52 · the Mycenaean era. Like the others, it
3:55 · consisted of a dromos, a long approach
3:57 · passageway, which we're currently in,
4:00 · and the tholos, the tomb proper, built
4:02 · into the side of a hill. The tholos
4:05 · always had a beehive shape. In later
4:08 · examples, like this one, the masonry was
4:10 · carefully dressed. Note the corballed
4:13 · arch over the door made to prevent the
4:15 · full weight of the structure from
4:17 · pressing down on the lintel.
· Tomb of Aegisthus
4:21 · Next to the tomb of Clytemnestra is the
4:24 · so-called tomb of Aegisthus, named after
4:27 · the queen's lover and co-conspirator.
4:30 · This is one of the oldest tombs at
4:33 · Mycenae, built of much rougher masonry.
4:42 · Because of its crude construction, the
4:44 · vault of the tholos collapsed in
4:46 · antiquity.
· Treasury of Atreus
4:50 · The undisputed masterpiece of Mycenaean
4:52 · feryary architecture, unfortunately
4:54 · currently swarming with tour groups, is
4:57 · the structure known as the treasury of
4:59 · Atreus.
5:02 · The dromos was preceded by an artificial
5:04 · terrace of undressed stone. The walls of
5:07 · the dromos were made of carefully squared
5:09 · blocks backed by impermeable waterproof
5:12 · clay. The spectacular entrance of
5:15 · a tholos, which we'll see momentarily,
5:18 · there we are, was flanked by green
5:21 · limestone columns with a red marble
5:23 · panel carved with swirls in the
5:25 · relieving triangle.
5:28 · Originally, a double wooden door sealed
5:30 · the entrance. The lintel consists of two
5:33 · blocks. The inner one, 25 ft long and 16
5:36 · wide, was carved to match the curve of
5:39 · the tholos. It weighs an estimated 120
5:42 · tons.
5:44 · It's a bit too loud to speak inside, so
5:46 · I'll give my spiel about the interior
5:48 · here. There are 33 concentric courses of
5:51 · masonry in the tholos walls, all
5:53 · carefully shaped and trimmed to create
5:55 · an unbroken surface. There are rows of
5:58 · nail holes in the stones from the third
6:00 · course onward. Originally, these held
6:02 · bronze rosettes. A side chamber opens
6:05 · from the fol with a depression at the
6:06 · center. The king who commissioned this
6:08 · tomb was almost certainly buried here.
6:11 · The burial was robbed many centuries
6:13 · ago, but the tomb remains a monument to
6:16 · the mysterious Bronze Age rulers of
6:19 · Mycenae.
6:21 · Let's go inside.
6:57 · creating a room that looks like it'd be
7:00 · hard.

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--> YouTube-Generated Transcript <--
	·	Introduction
0:00	·	Mycenae, namesake and showplace of the
0:04	·	civilization that dominated Greece in
0:06	·	the late Bronze Age, has been famous
0:08	·	since antiquity for the tombs of its
0:10	·	rulers. We know little about these
0:13	·	people beyond what archaeology can tell
0:15	·	us. In the home epics, Agamemnon, Lord
0:20	·	of Mycenae, is leader of the Greeks of
0:22	·	Troy, famous for the wealth of his
0:24	·	lands.
0:26	·	This may represent a faint memory of
0:28	·	Mycenae's actual prominence in the late
0:30	·	Bronze Age when the city's rulers seem
0:33	·	to have dominated a more or less loose
0:35	·	confederation that covered most of the
0:38	·	pelpines and eventually conquered Mauan.
0:44	·	The Mycenaeans exploded into prominence
0:47	·	around 1500 BC when some combination of
0:51	·	trade and dealings with Crete and Egypt
0:54	·	allowed a previously unremarkable
0:56	·	warrior aristocracy to become enormously
0:59	·	wealthy. This wealth was on display in
1:02	·	the tombs built in and around the
1:04	·	Acropolis of Mycenae which we are now
1:07	·	entering.
	·	Grave Circle A
1:10	·	Just inside the Lion Gate is grave
1:12	·	circle A. The shaft tombs here dated to
1:16	·	the 16th century BC at the beginning of
1:19	·	Mycenae's days of glory. Originally, they
1:22	·	lay outside the citadel. They were only
1:24	·	brought inside in the 13th century BC
1:27	·	during the final extension of the walls.
1:30	·	Over the intervening centuries, however,
1:33	·	their location was never forgotten. Once
1:35	·	they were enclosed inside the new walls,
1:38	·	a ring of horizontal limestone slabs
1:40	·	still partially in situ was built around
1:43	·	them.
1:45	·	When Heinrich Schliemann uncovered graves
1:48	·	in 1876,
1:50	·	he was convinced he had discovered the
1:51	·	remains of Agamemnon and his companions
1:54	·	murdered by Clytemnestra and Aegisthus after
1:57	·	the Trojan War. He was wrong. The graves
2:00	·	are centuries earlier than any plausible
2:02	·	date for the Trojan War. But the finds
2:04	·	in the tombs were spectacular. There
2:07	·	were six tombs with between one and five
2:09	·	bodies in each, a total of 15 burials.
2:13	·	The bones of the individuals buried here
2:15	·	were well preserved, in one case by a
2:18	·	quirk of soil conditions, even the flesh
2:20	·	and hair. The grave goods were
2:22	·	spectacular, weapons, jewelry, a silver
2:25	·	ron, and golderary masks.
	·	Grave Circle B
2:30	·	After the last shaft in Grave Circle A
2:32	·	was dug, the royal family of Mycenae
2:35	·	moved on to even more spectacular Tholos
2:37	·	tombs all outside the citadel. Before we
2:40	·	explore these, a brief word about grave
2:43	·	Circle B, which was partially
2:45	·	obliterated by one of those tholos tombs.
2:48	·	Unlike Grave Circle A, which was
2:50	·	carefully preserved, Grave Circle B was
2:53	·	ignored by the rulers of Mycenae's
2:55	·	golden age. Presumably those buried here
2:58	·	belonged to a different dynasty. The
3:00	·	graves here are older than those in
3:02	·	Circle A. In fact, they predate the Mian
3:05	·	apogee by about a half century, having
3:07	·	been dug in the 17th century BC. The
3:10	·	goods in most the 25 graves discovered
3:12	·	here were relatively modest, though
3:15	·	gold, ivory, and rock crystal attested
3:18	·	to trade and warfare that would soon
3:20	·	make the Masonans very rich.
	·	Tomb of Clytemnestra
3:24	·	Just beside Grave Circle A is the
3:26	·	so-called tomb of Clytemnestra. The
3:29	·	conventional name comes from a later
3:31	·	tradition recorded by Palscanius that
3:34	·	Clytemnestra and Aegisthus, the murderers of
3:37	·	Agamemnon, were not thought worthy of
3:39	·	being buried within the walls. In
3:41	·	reality, of course, we have no idea who
3:44	·	was buried here. This is the latest of
3:46	·	the nine tholos tombs at Mycenae, all of
3:49	·	which date to the last two centuries of
3:52	·	the Mycenaean era. Like the others, it
3:55	·	consisted of a dromos, a long approach
3:57	·	passageway, which we're currently in,
4:00	·	and the tholos, the tomb proper, built
4:02	·	into the side of a hill. The tholos
4:05	·	always had a beehive shape. In later
4:08	·	examples, like this one, the masonry was
4:10	·	carefully dressed. Note the corballed
4:13	·	arch over the door made to prevent the
4:15	·	full weight of the structure from
4:17	·	pressing down on the lintel.
	·	Tomb of Aegisthus
4:21	·	Next to the tomb of Clytemnestra is the
4:24	·	so-called tomb of Aegisthus, named after
4:27	·	the queen's lover and co-conspirator.
4:30	·	This is one of the oldest tombs at
4:33	·	Mycenae, built of much rougher masonry.
4:42	·	Because of its crude construction, the
4:44	·	vault of the tholos collapsed in
4:46	·	antiquity.
	·	Treasury of Atreus
4:50	·	The undisputed masterpiece of Mycenaean
4:52	·	feryary architecture, unfortunately
4:54	·	currently swarming with tour groups, is
4:57	·	the structure known as the treasury of
4:59	·	Atreus.
5:02	·	The dromos was preceded by an artificial
5:04	·	terrace of undressed stone. The walls of
5:07	·	the dromos were made of carefully squared
5:09	·	blocks backed by impermeable waterproof
5:12	·	clay. The spectacular entrance of
5:15	·	a tholos, which we'll see momentarily,
5:18	·	there we are, was flanked by green
5:21	·	limestone columns with a red marble
5:23	·	panel carved with swirls in the
5:25	·	relieving triangle.
5:28	·	Originally, a double wooden door sealed
5:30	·	the entrance. The lintel consists of two
5:33	·	blocks. The inner one, 25 ft long and 16
5:36	·	wide, was carved to match the curve of
5:39	·	the tholos. It weighs an estimated 120
5:42	·	tons.
5:44	·	It's a bit too loud to speak inside, so
5:46	·	I'll give my spiel about the interior
5:48	·	here. There are 33 concentric courses of
5:51	·	masonry in the tholos walls, all
5:53	·	carefully shaped and trimmed to create
5:55	·	an unbroken surface. There are rows of
5:58	·	nail holes in the stones from the third
6:00	·	course onward. Originally, these held
6:02	·	bronze rosettes. A side chamber opens
6:05	·	from the fol with a depression at the
6:06	·	center. The king who commissioned this
6:08	·	tomb was almost certainly buried here.
6:11	·	The burial was robbed many centuries
6:13	·	ago, but the tomb remains a monument to
6:16	·	the mysterious Bronze Age rulers of
6:19	·	Mycenae.
6:21	·	Let's go inside.
6:57	·	creating a room that looks like it'd be
7:00	·	hard.