In the southwestern region of Armenia lies the remains of Mezamor, one of the largest metropolises of the European Bronze Age. Mezamor was an important trading and power center in the region due to its location at the intersection of two trade routes. Archaeological remains of Mezamor provide insights into the economic and cultural significance of the region during the Bronze Age. A team of Polish and Armenian archaeologists has been conducting excavations in Mezamor since 2013. Recently, they made a unique discovery in the Mezamor necropolis – an untouched “Golden Grave” containing hundreds of jewelry pieces and two skeletons.
The Golden Grave is a rare find as the archaeologists had previously discovered about a hundred graves, all of which were looted. The recently discovered grave is a stone cist grave, where the dead were placed in a pit lined with large stones and then covered with a burial mound. The grave contains the remains of a man and a woman, both between 30 and 40 years old. Their cause of death remains a mystery, but they were buried with over a hundred beads and several golden pendants, some of which resemble Celtic crosses. In addition, about a dozen carnelian pendants were found next to the skeletons, which likely belonged to three necklaces. The grave also contained a dozen intact ceramic vessels and a faience bottle, which is unique to the necropolis. The bottle was imported from the border region of Syria and Mesopotamia, indicating that Mezamor was located on two important long-distance trade routes during the Bronze Age.
The cultural identity of the Bronze Age inhabitants of Mezamor remains a mystery as they did not use writing, unlike the Mesopotamians and Egyptians. The team of archaeologists hopes to uncover the secrets of the Mezamor inhabitants through further excavations and genetic analysis of the skeletons. The discovery of the Golden Grave provides valuable insights into the burial practices and material culture of the Bronze Age inhabitants of Mezamor.
