IFL Science
By Laura Simmons
January 23, 2024
After years of speculation and controversy, the occupants of three tombs belonging to the family of Alexander the Great have finally been identified. Located in the Great Tumulus of Vergina in northern Greece, the burials contain the remains of Alexander’s father, stepmother, half-siblings, and son, along with armor and other items belonging to the man himself.
First excavated in 1977, the tombs are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and, according to the authors of a new study, “contained an astoundingly rich array of burial goods.” However, while there’s never been any doubt that the interred bones belonged to close relatives of Alexander, scholars have spent almost half a century bickering over who exactly lies within each grave.