Kamenica Tumulus
Encyclopedia
The Kamenica Tumulus is an important archaeological site in Kamenicë
Kamenicë, Korçë
Kamenicë is a community in Korçë District, southeastern Albania....

, Korçë District
Korçë District
The District of Korçë , is one of the thirty-six districts of Albania. According estimates, as of January 1, 2010, 138,898 people lived in the Korce District...

, Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...

. The site includes a museum dedicated to the prehistory of Albania and of the surrounding region.

History of the Tumulus Excavation

The tumulus
Tumulus
A tumulus is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, Hügelgrab or kurgans, and can be found throughout much of the world. A tumulus composed largely or entirely of stones is usually referred to as a cairn...

 is located in the side of the Kamenica hills in the southern side of the Korçë Plain
Korçë Plain
The Korçë Plain is the largest lowland in southeastern Albania.In its southern side is found the Kamenica Tumulus....

, at 8 kilometres (5 mi) from Korçë
Korçë
Korçë is a city in southeastern Albania and the capital of the Korçë District. It has a population of around 105,000 people , making it the sixth largest city in Albania...

.

Looters heavily damaged the site during the 1997-1999 period following the 1997 rebellion in Albania
1997 rebellion in Albania
The 1997 unrest in Albania, also known as the Lottery Uprising or Anarchy in Albania, was an uprising sparked by Ponzi scheme failures...

, which was followed by an interdisciplinary work performed in the 2000-2002 period by the Albanian Institute of Archaeology, the Albanian Rescue Archaeology Unit, and the Museum of Korçë and aimed at excavation campaigns.

The end of the excavations showed that the Tumulus of Kamenica represents the largest burial monument of its kind in relation to 200 tumuli excavated in Albania and neighboring Balkan
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...

 countries.

The central grave, which dates back to the Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...

 (13th century BC) is surrounded by two large concentric circles unlike any other tumuli discovered in Albania. The tumulus grew to 40 graves in the Late Bronze Age (1200-1050 BC) and to 200 in the Early Iron Age (1050-750 BC). The tumulus grew further until the 7th century BC until it took an elliptical shape with dimensions of 70 m X 50 m. During the excavation campaign more than 400 graves, 440 skeletons, and 3,500 archaeological objects were found.

Conservation and presentation work

In 2007 a stone bridge and a protecting wall in the southern part were built, followed by a canal dug in order to drain the waters. In addition green courtyards surround the tumulus and lime paths direct the visitors to the tumulus and to the museum.

Museum and cultural activities

The museum is a portico style building, made of wood. It includes pannels with the history of the excavation. Of particular interest is the illustration of the surgery of a male cranium, performed in the 6th century BC, which shows the advanced medical knowledge of the community that lived in the area at that time. The museum also includes two replica graves with the original remains.

The site organizes several cultural activities, in particular classical musical concerts. In addition, on September 29th is Albania's National Cultural Heritage Day, which has been celebrated every year recently in the site.

Recent discoveries

Recently archaeologists have also found in one of the graves the skeleton of a pregnant woman and her unborn child dating to 3000 BC.
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