Last update:
01-Feb-2021

A particularly interesting find came to light in the area of ancient Eleusis. This was a multiple burial in a porosarcophagus from the 5th century B.C., found in a cemetery with a sarcophagus complex in the ancient city of Eleusis. Cross burial was not common, either in this necropolis, or more generally in other areas in ancient Greece. Parts of several human skeletons were found in the sarcophagus. In the context of paleoanthropological and paleopathological study of the skeletons, an attempt to identify the sex and age of the individuals was made. Most people carry skeletal features of the female gender, in early adulthood, as in childhood. The questions raised by the interdisciplinary study also concerned determination of the number of individuals corresponding to the skeletal remains found. Identification was particularly demanding, because of the persistence of findings at different burial levels. The differential diagnosis of pathological bone changes required special attention, due to the conditions of the intermediate material and the soil in the burial area. One of the characteristic findings in a young female pelvis was a symmetrical exostosis at the center of the iliosacral joint. The question of a possible familial relationship between the individuals placed in the sarcophagus remains open.

Key words: Eleusis, Multiple burial, Sacroiliitis, Sarcophagus.