The House of the Tiles at Lerna was a two-story building ~12 by 25 meters with stone foundations, mudbrick walls, and lengthwise corridors, topped by baked terra cotta tiles — thousands collapsed in the destruction layer. Built c. 2,700 BCE, ~200 years before Stonehenge's sarsens, it had over 150 clay sealings from ~60 seals, hinting at early administrative control.
House of the Tiles: two-story Early Bronze Age building with 60 seal types
Greeceunverified
Key facts
- The settlement was heavily fortified with a double ring of defensive walls and towers
- The House of the Tiles was a two-story building measuring 12 by 25 meters
- The building had stone foundations, mudbrick walls, and corridors running its length
- The roof was made of baked terra cotta tiles, thousands of which were found collapsed in the destruction layer
- The House of the Tiles was built around 2,700 BCE, approximately 200 years before Stonehenge's sarsen stones were erected
- Excavators found over 150 clay sealings carrying impressions from around 60 different seals, interpreted as evidence of early centralized control over goods
- Some scholars describe it as a 'proto-palace'; others argue it was a community building with no throne or owner's inscription
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