A Bronze Age tomb dated to 1450 BC, discovered near Pylos, south-western Greece, contained a spectacular array of precious jewellery, weapons and riches.

The tomb was discovered in May last year during excavations by a team of archaeologists of University of Cincinnati. The site of Pylos was a large administrative centre in the Bronze Age. It is here where archaeologist Carl Blegen unearthed in 1939 a number of clay tablets written in Linear B script, the earliest known written form of Greek.

The tomb contained the remains of an man in his 30s, believed to be a powerful Mycenaean warrior or priest. He was buried with more than 2000 objects, including four solid gold rings, silver cups, precious stone beads, fine-toothed ivory combs and an intricately built sword, among other weapons.

The burial was dubbed the “Griffin Warrior” for the discovery of an ivory plaque adorned with a griffin. Significant number of finds was created by Minoans, a culture that preceded the Mycenaean civilisation, that arose on the Crete, south-east of Pylos. The grave is said to have been constructed at the time the Mycenaeans were conquering the Minoans

. Among the finds are four golden rings, of which one is said to be the second largest one found in the Aegean so far. They also area said to contain skilfully crafted ornamentation and scenes. The first ring shows a scene of a bull leaping by athletes – a common motif seen in Minoan imagery. Other ring being the the second largest gold signet ring in the Aegean world, shows five elaborately dressed females gathered by a seaside shrine. Another shows a female, possibly a goddess, holding a staff and flanked by two birds atop a mountain. The final one depicts  a woman presenting a bull’s horn to a goddess seated on a high-backed throne,  holding a mirror.