Tomb of the Palmettes

The Tomb of the Palmettes, sometimes known as the Rhomiopoulou Tomb, is an ancient Macedonian tomb of the Hellenistic period in Mieza, Macedonia, Greece, noted for the quality of its painted decoration [1]. It was built in the first half of the third century BC [1]. The tomb consists of a monumental facade and two vaulted chambers, covered over by an earthen tumulus 2.5 m high and 15-17 m in diameter [1]. The facade is shaped like that of a Greek temple, with four engaged Ionic columns supporting an architrave and a pediment [1]. The metre-high triangular tympanum is painted with a depiction of an old man and woman, who are presumably the tomb's occupants, lying together on a couch at a symposium [1]. The unique painted design on the ceiling, consisting of six palmettes and water lilies on a light blue background, is the source of the tomb's modern name [1]. The tomb was discovered in 1971 after illegal excavations [1]. It was then excavated by Katerina Rhomiopoulou from 1971 to 1973 [1].