Santorini – The South of the Island – Ancient Historic Thera – Cemeteries

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Cemeteries

The extensive cemeteries are disposed along the saddle or col which joins Mesa Vouno to the main mountain of Prophitis Elias. Long before reaching the ridge as you climb up on the Kamari side, clear cuts and stepped platforms in the rock reveal the sites of tombs on the hillside to the north of the road, dating largely from Hellenistic times: then in the last few switchbacks, the bases and steps of a wide variety of slightly earlier funerary buildings can be seen, often in different colours of stone—red, white and grey—to either side of the ancient road up to the city which is also visible in stretches. The simplest graves would have been marked with a cube of stone engraved with the name of the deceased; the important early Archaic graves were marked by standing, marble kouroi; later ones by small architectural structures. one would have arrived at the city through a forest of funer ary monuments, unable to see the habitation yet, but with wide, open views to the sea. On the Peri­ssa side, just below the enclosure fence of the site, are more monument bases again in different colours of stone. The rich finds—statuary, votive gifts and funerary urns—found in these cemeteries are on display in the Archaeological Museum in Chora (see p. 38). As recently as november 2000, a fine Daedalic kore of the late 7th century bc was uncovered on the south-facing slope: the well-preserved, monolithic statue of a female figure, with long, braided hair, stands 2.3m high, and once marked a tomb. It is a particularly fine piece of early Archaic sculpture.

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