Impressive new finds at Akrotiri on Greek island of Santorini

Significant new finds have been unearthed during the ongoing excavation directed by Prof. Christos Doumas at Akrotiri, Thira, which are sponsored by the Kaspersky Lab and taking place under the auspices of the Archaeological Society at Athens.

According to a culture ministry announcement, the finds were made under rubble inside a large and probably public building known as the 'House of Benches' that is south of Xeste 3, near where the golden ibex now on display at the Museum of Prehistoric Thira was also found (1999) inside a clay chest beside a pile of animal horns.

Following the gradual revealing and cleaning of the small chest in the northwest corner of the space, a marble Proto-Cycladic female figurine was found placed diagonally along the bottom of the vessel.

From the group of chests in the southeast corner of the space, three were uncovered, of which the two smallest were filled with egg-shaped masses of clay while the largest contained two small marble Proto-Cycladic collared jars, placed upside down, a marble vial and an alabaster vase, the announcement said.

According to the ministry, the ongoing excavation at Akrotiri was gradually unveiling an area where ritual acts were performed that was very close to Xeste 3, an important public building decorated with rich murals at the southern edge of the settlement.

These finds are undoubtedly linked to the views and beliefs of Thiran society and provide a stimulus for a new interpretive drive on fundamental questions about the ideology and possibly the religion of prehistoric Aegean society, the announcement said.

Source: The Greek Ministry of Culture [October 12, 2018]