Pylos: From princes to a palace in Messenia
World Archaeology Magazine highlights UC discoveries from ancient Greece
World Archaeology Magazine highlighted the startling discoveries of stunning ancient Greek artifacts by researchers with the University of Cincinnati's Department of Classics.
UC Classics Professor Jack Davis and Senior Research Associate Sharon Stocker discovered a 3,500-year-old tomb for a leader they called the Griffin Warrior after the mythological figure emblazoned on his ivory plaque.
UC Classics researchers Jack Davis and Sharon Stocker found weapons, armor and jewelry in the 3,500-year-old tomb of the Griffin Warrior. The pieces included a gold-hilted sword. Photo/Jeff Vanderpool/UC Classics
The UC College of Arts and Sciences researchers were working in an olive grove in Pylos, Greece, in 2015 when they found an undisturbed tomb containing the remains and artifacts belonging to this leader, including weapons, armor and jewelry. Among the etched sealstones was one depicting mortal combat in such exquisite detail that Archaeology Magazine hailed it as a Bronze Age masterpiece.
Researchers determined the Griffin Warrior was likely 30 to 35 years old when he died. They performed a facial reconstruction to see what he might have looked like. A DNA analysis determined the Griffin Warrior ruled the homeland where he likely was born.
Shortly after, the researchers found adjacent tombs that contained a similar trove of artifacts that are helping researchers better understand the lives and culture of Mycenaean Greece.
Many of the objects discovered were engraved with mythological or religious figures and iconic images of life in Greece 3,500 years ago.
Davis and Stocker last year published a book on their discoveries titled “The Kingdom of Pylos: Warrior-Princes of Mycenaean Greece.“
UC Senior Research Associate Sharon Stocker works at an excavation in Pylos, Greece. UC Classics work in Greece was named a top-10 discovery of the decade by Archaeology Magazine. Photo/Jack Davis
Last year many of the artifacts went on display in North America for the first time at an exhibition at the J. Paul Getty Museum. The exhibition titled Kingdom of Pylos closed on Monday after a six-month run.
“Pylos is mentioned in both the Iliad and the Odyssey as the homeland of King Nestor, the wise elder statesman of the Trojan War,“ museum curator Claire Lyons told World Archaeology Magazine.
UC has a long history of scholarship and discovery in Greece. The late UC Classics Professor Carl Blegen discovered the Palace of Nestor with Greek research partner Konstantinos Kourouniotis of the National Museum in Greece while working in Pylos prior to World War II.
Researchers continue to pore over the weapons, jewelry, armor and other objects from the discovery to learn more about this ancient civilization. Stocker and Davis said many of them are works of Minoan art, perhaps from Crete or the Greek mainland. Others are Mycenaean, reflecting its culture and practices.
Meanwhile, other pieces discovered by Davis and Stocker reflect Egyptian influences such as depictions of the goddess Hathor.
The magazine also highlighted Blegen's discoveries of 600 tablets inscribed in Linear B, an early Greek language.
Read the World Archaeology Magazine story.
Featured image at top: A sealstone depicts mortal combat in exquisite detail. Photo/Jeff Vanderpool/UC Classics
World Archaeology Magazine highlighted the amazing discoveries from ancient Greece by University of Cincinnati Professor Jack Davis and Senior Research Associate Sharon Stocker. Photo/Provided
Related Stories
Pylos: From princes to a palace in Messenia
January 13, 2026
World Archaeology Magazine highlights discoveries from ancient Greece such as the Griffin Warrior by UC Classics Professor Jack Davis and Senior Research Associate Sharon Stocker. Many of the artifacts from their discoveries went on display last year in North America for the first time with an exhibit at the Getty Museum.
Risks in AI-powered mental health support
September 10, 2025
Assistant Professor Kelly Merrill Jr. warns AI technology is far from ready to replace human therapists. Merrill, who studies the intersection of technology and health communication, was interviewed by Spectrum News to discuss safeguards over AI and health communications.
UC expert talks about excavating Pompeii
April 25, 2025
UC Classics Professor Steven Ellis talks to the podcast When in Rome about his excavations in the ancient Roman city of Pompeii, which was entombed in ash after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius.