A mysterious iron dagger discovered inside one of the graves in a Tylos-era burial mound in Maqaba was revealed to the public by a team of Japanese archaeologists yesterday.
The first weapon to be unearthed in a Tylos burial, the artefact was unexpected because “the people of Tylos were peaceful”, said Nara Archaeological Mission leader Dr Kiyohide Saito.
Remains of an iron sickle and a ring, which was still on the skeleton’s finger, were discovered in another grave in the site known as ‘Maqaba burial mound number 1’.
The findings were presented by the archaeologists from Japan to villagers and history lovers in an open day meeting, as they do every year after the end of excavations for the season.
This was the mission’s seventh year excavating the site, which dates between 330 BCE and 300 CE (2,350 to 1,700 years ago) and contains around 100 smaller mounds.
At least one body was buried in each grave, and the bodies could belong to same family or clans in the Tylos society, experts theorise.
As of 2026, 52 tombs have been uncovered. From 2017 to 2025, 36 tombs were excavated, only six of which were left undisturbed by graverobbers of old.
In the 2026 season, five graves were excavated, and six more were discovered, to be excavated next year.
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