The Gold Necklace from the Grave of the Griffin Warrior at Pylos

The Late Helladic II burial of the so-called Griffin Warrior, discovered at Pylos in 2015, yielded hundreds of precious artifacts. One find surpassed the others and exemplified the difficulties of the excavation: an elaborate gold necklace with two beads of agate and one of faience, the faience bead perhaps an Egyptian import. We describe the necklace here in detail, argue that it is of Minoan manufacture, and suggest that it had been worn as a badge of honor by warriors. Detailed chemical analyses appear in an attached appendix and support the identification of the central bead as faience.