A horse burial which contained an unusually well preserved skeleton of a horse, intact even down to the hooves, was discovered during landscaping works around the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Centre in the Faliro Delta.

The find was presented to the Central Archaeological Council in a session held on Tuesday.

“In the Faliro necropolis we have found four complete horse burials, as well as parts of other skeletons, therefore it is not something rare for the area. What is rare and surprised us was the degree of preservation of the specific skeleton, which even has its hooves. For zoo-archaeologists or a university, this find could be an excellent opportunity for a study. Having such a large number of skeletons – four is quite a number! – such a study could reach a number of conclusions on races and the evolution of species. From this point of view, this find is very important,” said Stella Chrysoulaki, the head of the West Attica, Piraeus and Islands Ephorate who is in charge of the dig.

She noted that a horse burial in a graveyard for people occurred now and again, while it was not strange for the Faliro necropolis “where unbelievable things happen.” She noted that it was a cemetery stretching from the archaic era into the Classical era, containing many strange and unusual finds.

A total of 136 burial sites dating back to the archaic era had been found in the 840 square metre ancient cemetery, including the horse burial and sections of a mass grave, burial urns and other finds.