Amphipolis Tomb May Belong to Alexander the Great’s Mother
Speculation has been running wild in recent weeks over who might be buried in the massive tomb complex currently being excavated at Amphipolis, located in the region of Macedonia in northern Greece. Now, in a breakthrough discovery, archeologists excavating the site have exposed two 7-foot-tall marble statues inside the tomb, guarding the entrance to its main chamber. According to some scholars, the presence of these sculpted female figures, known as caryatids , strongly suggests that the tomb may belong to Olympias, the mother of the great warrior-king Alexander the Great. The Kasta Hill archeological site at Amphipolis, located some 370 miles north of Athens and 65 miles east of the city of Thessaloniki, is believed to be the largest burial site ever discovered in Greece. Dating to between 325-300 B.C., near the end of the reign of Alexander the Great, the burial mound and tomb complex was partially destroyed during the Roman occupation of Greece, but then appears to h...