Funerary Monuments on Palaiomylos Hill

South of the modern settlement of Agios Efstratios lies the “Paliomylos” hill, a site of particular archaeological interest. There are rock-cut trenches in the soft bedrock, rectangular and elongated, interpreted as tombs. Their architectural form points to the chamber tombs of the Late Bronze Age, especially widespread in the Mycenaean world. The dating is supported by a chance find, a fragmentary necklace likely deposited as a grave good. Outstanding among its elements is a rock-crystal pendant decorated with a female figure in a long garment, reminiscent of the Mycenaean goddess Potnia Theron. The adornment is completed by disc-shaped faience beads with a toothed rim. All the evidence indicates that at Paliomylos a significant installation with settlement and cemetery flourished during the Late Bronze Age.