Ancient Macedonian tomb of king Philip the second found at Vergina (ancient Aigai) in Greece
At the modern town of Vergina in Greece were found some very significant ancient Macedonian tombs that belong to Macedonian kings. Vergina (Greek: Βεργίνα) is a small town in northern Greece, located in the regional unit of Imathia, Central Macedonia. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Veroia, of which it is a municipal unit. The town became internationally famous in 1977, when the Greek archaeologist Manolis Andronikos unearthed the burial site of the kings of Macedon, including the tomb of Philip II, father of Alexander the Great. The finds established the site as the ancient Aigai (Greek: Αἰγαί). The modern town of Vergina is about 13 km (8 mi) southeast of the district centre of Veroia and about 80 km (50 mi) southwest of Thessaloniki, the capital of Greek Macedonia. The town has a population of about two thousand people and stands on the foothills of Mount Pieria, at an elevation of 120 m (394 ft) above sea level. The Greek archaeologist Manolis Andronikos became convinced that a hill called the Great Tumulus (Greek: Μεγάλη Τούμπα) concealed the tombs of the Macedonian kings. In 1977, Andronikos undertook a six-week dig at the Great Tumulus and found four buried chambers, which he identified as hitherto undisturbed tombs. Three more were found in 1980. Excavations continued through the 1980s and 1990s. Andronikos claimed that these were the burial sites of the kings of Macedon, including the tomb of Philip II, father of Alexander the Great (Tomb II). Andronikos maintained that another tomb (Tomb III) was of Alexander IV of Macedon, son of Alexander the Great and Roxana. Some other studies claim that the golden weaponry and royal objects found in Tomb II may have belonged to Alexander the Great.
Size: 4614px × 2993px
Location: Vergina town (or ancient Aigai), Macedonia, Greece
Photo credit: © PANAGIOTIS KARAPANAGIOTIS / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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