Ur's Golden Graves

In 1922, British archaeologist Leonard Woolley arrived in southern Iraq to excavate the ancient city of Ur. He expected to find ruins. What he found instead would shake our understanding of how ancient civilizations treated death.

Over twelve years of digging, Woolley uncovered something unprecedented: elaborate stone tombs accompanied by mass burials. Not one or two bodies, but dozens. The Great Death Pit alone contained 74 people, all arranged in careful rows. Women wore matching golden headdresses of stunning craftsmanship. Musicians held lyres. Soldiers wore copper helmets. All had been buried together around 2600 BCE.