Ancient Greeks were forced to tighten their tunics thousands of years before their descendants faced a similar fate under debt-cutting austerity measures, a senior archaeologist said yesterday.
Graves excavated in recent months in the northern Greek region of Macedonia show the population scaled back on funeral offerings some 2,300 years ago, archaeologist Manthos Besios told Ta Nea daily.
The graves in Pydna, a city in the ancient Macedonian kingdom elevated to fame by Alexander the Great, contained gold jewels, elaborate vases and ivory-plated beds in the fourth century BCE, Besios said.
But a century later, under King Cassander of Macedon, these were phased out in favour of cheaper materials such as clay.
“At the close of the fourth century, a decree issued by Cassander’s commander in Macedon-occupied Athens forbade the building of elaborate funeral monuments and limited spending on ceremonies,” Besios told the daily.
“It was like the period we are going through today - one that will possibly be found by an archaeologist of the future,” he jibed.
Source: Gulf Times