Archaeologists in Greece have discovered the ruins of an ancient 10-room palace dating back to the Mycenaean Age. A variety of important archaic inscriptions, artifacts, including swords, seals, clay pots and scripted tablets, have been found nearby according to the Greek Culture Ministry’s announcement on Tuesday.
The palace, likely built around the 17th-16th centuries BC, had around ten rooms and was discovered near Sparta in southern Greece. The palatial remnants were unearthed at the archaeological site known as Aghios Vassilios Hill, a sizable tract near the ancient village of Xirokambi, where Greek archaeologists have been digging since 2009.
At the site, archaeologists found objects of worship, clay figurines, a cup adorned with a bull’s head, swords and fragments of murals.
Evidence indicates that it was destroyed in a fire sometime in the late 14th or early 13th century BC, but further research is needed to confirm this hypothesis.
Since the palace is largely destroyed, archaeologists can’t offer much information on its architecture.
However, since 2009, excavations in the area have unearthed inscriptions on tablets detailing religious ceremonies and names and places in a script called Linear B, the oldest script to be discovered in Europe. It first appears in Crete from around 1375 BC and was only deciphered in the mid 20th century.
The new discovery will allow for more research on the “political, administrative, economic and societal organisation of the region”, and provide “new information on the beliefs and language systems of the Mycenean people,” the ministry said in a statement.
According to the culture ministry, more than 150 archaeological excavations were have been carried out in Greece so far this year, “demonstrating the importance of the archaeological wealth and cultural heritage of the country”.