The name of this small village that was built by the refugees of Pontos was fated to stay graven on our memory. The small village of Vergina, 10 km from Veria and 80 km from Thessaloniki, is now one of the most important archaeological sites in Greece as its grounds hold some of the richest ancient treasures ever found.
In 1976, Professor Manolis Andronikos focused his researches on a small mound, a "toumba" on the outskirts of the village. The tumulus  - "toumbes", as the local people call them -  are a typical mark of the Macedonian landscape and, as it was known since the 19th century, they were hiding remnants of the past. The "Great Tumulus" (in Greek, Μεγάλη Τούμπα - Megali Toumba) of Vergina did not seem to hide something more important that could make it more special than the others. The discovery that would take place over there was an unbelievable mix-up of intuition, persistence, lack and fate. The indefatigable researcher, after 30 years of searching, would associate himself with the most important archaeological discovery of the 20th century and he would make Vergina known worldwide.
Since then, other known archaeologists had located the walls, the theater and the palace of Aegae, the capital of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia. Archaeologists were interested in the hills around Vergina as early as the 1850s, knowing that the site of Aegae was in the vicinity and suspecting that the hills were burial mounds.
Manolis Andronikos became convinced that a hill called the "Great Tumulus" (in Greek, Μεγάλη Τούμπα) concealed the tombs of the Macedonian Kings. When Professor M. Andronikos began his researches, the Great Tumulus was 110 meters across by 12 meters high. So the excavations of the hill started in 1976 by Manolis Andronikos. The objects that were found in the Great Tumulus of Vergina belong to two groups. The first group of objects consists of 47 broken grave stones which were found in the filling of the huge mound which covered the royal tombs. These steles, which date back to the 2nd half of the 4th century BC, were monuments that decorated the graves of ordinary Macedonian citizens, both men and women. Almost all of them bear inscriptions which record the name of the deceased. 75 names were recognized, all of which are Greek. The existence of a significant cemetary in the area was known due to lder researches.
In 1977, Andronikos undertakes a six-week dig at the Tumulus and finds a huge Macedonian tomb having the form of a palace and the façade of a temple that was undisturbed. The facade has the form of a Doric temple, with a marble door, and is adorned with triglyphs and metopes. Above the Doric frieze, however, there is an Ionic frieze with a painting of a hunting scene. Three horsemen and seven men on foot pursue a lion, a deer, and a boar. The tomb is not plundered and Andronikos goes inside through a hole on the ceiling. What he saw was against all hopes. In the burial chamber was found a marble sarcophagus, inside which was a gold larnax containing the ashes of the dead king and his crown. His weapons were also here, together with symposium and bathing accoutrements and the remains of the wooden mortuary couch adorned with gold, glass, and ivory. The larnax, the crown, the weapons (most notable among which is the shield), the mortuary couch, the rest of the personal effects, and grave goods are displayed in showcases in the open space in front of the tomb. Being astonished, the professor realises that he stands before a dead king of the ancient Macedonia who might be dead around 330 BC but he could not think who this dead king might be. After a long thinking, the tomb is identified as the one of Philip II, the great military and political personality of the 4th century BC, the father of Alexander the Great. Philip II was murdered in the Theater of Aegae, during the wedding festivities of his daughter, Kleopatra. Many aspects of his assassination were quite shady. He was buried just a few meters from the place where the crime was committed.
A new riddle was at the antechamber of Philip’s tomb as another gold larnax was discovered with a royal diadem inside a marble sarcophagus, together with a wooden mortuary couch with similar decoration to Philip’s. The larnax must have contained the ashes of Kleopatra, Philip’s youngest wife, who was assassinated immediately after her husband. The funeral gifts, the golden garlands and the crowns that were found in the tomb were a proof of the deads' royal origin.
Therefore, the tomb was identified as the one of Philip II, even though during the last years certain scientists claim that the tomb was dated 356 BC, 20 years later than the year of Philip's death. At that period, Aridaios, the half-brother of Alexander the Great, one of the heirs to the Macedonian throne, was murdered. The argumentation from both sides continues, as each side has its own reasoning. No matter who the dead is, Andronikos' discovery is not outdone any more.
The second tomb that was found then, was almost forgotten. It was called "tomb of Persephone", This tomb had been plundered. However, it contained an extremely invaluable finding: the excellent mural that represented the elopement of Persefoni by Pluto, the under world god. The representation of the Elopement is attributed to Nikomachus, the teacher of Philoxenus. This mural is found in the northern wall of the tomb. What depicts is the chariot of the God of Death, who grabs the young maid, while Hermes leads this frenzied course. A young figure - a friend of Persefone - paralyzed with fear witnesses the incident. The eastern wall depicts a sad sitting figure, the unconsoled mother Goddess Dimiter, while the southern wall depicts The Fates - klotho, Lahesis and Atropus - who decide on people and god’s fake. The tomb complex also included another macedonian tomb. Its fahade was very similar to that of Philip. There were no semicolumns but real columns that shaped an arcade. This tomb was not covered by the Big Mound.
Last is the tomb of the prince, which is ascribed to Alexander IV, the son of Alexander the Great. It was found in 1978 in the "Great Tumulus". It closely resembles Philip’s, though it is smaller and instead of half columns has two omphalia, or discs, with painted heads. The tomb had a painted frieze, nothing of which survives, however, owing to the technique used to paint it (fresco). The cinerary urn was a silver hydria, with a gold oak wreath placed around the neck. There were also weapons in the tomb, together with quantities of grave goods and vases and a wooden mortuary couch adorned with gold and ivory. The rich funeral gifts were weapons, silver and bronze pots, metal pots, as well as a bed with a decoration of gold and ivory. The ivory representation of Dionysus, Ariadne and a Satyr come from this bed.
 The decoration of the couch is notable for a representation of Dionysos with a flute-player and a satyr. All the contents of the tomb are displayed in showcases in the open space in front of the tomb.
Moreover, one ruined tomb with a frontal colonnade of four columns, as well as the 'heroon' (a shrine dedicated to the worship of the illustrious dead) were found next to the "tomb of Persephone". This tomb is situated north of the 'heroon' and the other three tombs of the Great Tumulus of which it is a part. It was built  around 300 BC and it is the only 'Macedonian tomb' to have a free standing frontal colonnade.
The royal tombs was covered by a tumulus of earth, probably after the withdrawal of king Pyrrus and his mercenaries and their pillaging. According to ancient sources, during his second invasion in 274/273 b.C. when he arrived at Aeges (Vergina), he pillaged all the royal tombs and scattered the bones of all kings. So, the Great Tumulus covered the tombs and the smaller tumuli being a landmark of the area. On the discovery of the Royal Tombs of Vergina, an immediate programme was launched to preserve the magnificent murals which adorned them.
For the preservation of the Royal Tombs themselves a subterranean structure was built in 1992 to encase and protect the ancient monuments by maintaining a constant temperature and humidity, both indispensable for the preservation of the wall paintings. Externally the structure has the appearance of an earth mound; inside it are the treasures found in the Royal Tombs, which have been on exhibition since November 1997.  The golden larnaxes of Philip's tomb, the weapons, certain photos as well as the beds ofr gold and ivory of the tomb of Philip, the lheads of Philip and Alexander the Great mounted on ivory are exhibited there, pieces of art unique and precious….

By the Archaeologist George Koutsouflakis