A rare burial of a man embracing a woman came to light in the excavation at Diros. Double burials in embracing position is extremely rare and this one in Diros is one of the oldest in the world and is dated at about 3.800 BC.

The double undisturbed burial of  the man and woman, in embracing position, is not the only finding. A second double undisturbed burial of young adults, man and woman in an extremely contracted position in connection with broken arrowheads, was also discovered. These are the two most important findings of the excavation.

The discovery was made in Xagkounaki, located in the surroundings of the cave Alepotrypa, Diros. The cave of Diros is a coastal site in the Peloponnese peninsula known to have been inhabited since 6,000 BC.

The announcement of the findings was made by a press release from the Ministry of Culture and coincided with Valentine’s Day, the day when couples celebrate their love.

The simultaneous double burials are not frequent and even less frequent as an archaeological find. Furthermore, double burials in embracing position are extremely rare and the one in Diros is one of the oldest in the world. It has been dated by carbon-14 in 3800 BC, while bone DNA analysis of the two skeletons proved that we are talking about a man and a woman.

The project, completed in 2014, was held under the direction of honorary curator Dr. George A.. Papathanasopoulos multidisciplinary team Ephorate Paleoanthropology and Speleology of Southern Greece (responsible Dr. Anastasia Papathanasiou) in cooperation with Greek and foreign scientists and under the supervision of E. EPCA and fifth EBA. The goal was completing the excavation and preparing the publication of the results of the long-term excavation in Alepotrypa cave and the excavation investigation of the surrounding area.