The Kingdom of Pylos: Warrior-Princes of Ancient Greece at the Getty Villa

 

Left: Sword Hilt with a Horned Handle, Minoan or Mycenaean, 1520–1440 BCE
Bronze, gold, and ivory, with a modern acrylic blade
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum, Chora, SN24-0044 / Photo © Palace of Nestor Excavations, Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati / Photo: Jeff Vanderpool
VEX.2025.1.16
Right: Dagger, Mycenaean, 1520–1360 BCE
Bronze, silver, and gold
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / National Archaeological Museum, Athens, P8339
VEX.2025.1.6

 
 

The Kingdom of Pylos

Warrior-Princes of Ancient Greece

June 27, 2025 – January 12, 2026

 

Encounter the latest discoveries from Messenia, an epicenter of Mycenaean civilization in Late Bronze Age Greece, displayed for the first time outside Europe. Archaeology and cutting-edge science reveal the world of the Griffin Warrior, whose grave held offerings of incomparable artistry. Princely burials in monumental tombs reflect a society that came to be ruled by the Palace of Nestor in ancient Pylos. Inscribed clay tablets and vivid wall paintings document the final years of a powerful kingdom.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Exhibition Preview

 

Tablet on Feasting (The Tripod Tablet), Mycenaean, about 1180 BCE
Clay
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / National Archaeological Museum, Athens, 12586 / Photo: The Pylos Tablets Digital Project, © Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati
VEX.2025.1.2

Dagger, Mycenaean, 1520–1360 BCE
Bronze, silver, and gold
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / National Archaeological Museum, Athens, P8339
VEX.2025.1.6

Wall Painting with a Griffin and Lion, Mycenaean, 1240 – 1190 BCE
Lime plaster and pigment
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum, Chora, CM 5256 series
Image © J. Paul Getty Trust, photo: Jeff Vanderpool
VEX.2025.1.12

Reconstruction of a Wall Painting with a Lyre Player, 1955–56
Piet de Jong
Watercolor, gouache, and pencil on paper
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Photo © Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati, PDJ530
VEX.2025.1.226

Owl Appliqué, Mycenaean, 1630–1510 BCE
Gold
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Chora, CM 2639
VEX.2025.1.171

Sword Hilt with a Horned Handle, Minoan or Mycenaean, 1520–1440 BCE
Bronze, gold, and ivory, with a modern acrylic blade
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum, Chora, SN24-0044 / Photo © Palace of Nestor Excavations, Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati / Photo: Jeff Vanderpool
VEX.2025.1.16

Necklace, Minoan, 1630 – 1440 BCE
Gold, agate, and faience
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Messenia, Kalamata, SN15-0097 / © Palace of Nestor Excavations, Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati
Photo: Jeff Vanderpool
VEX.2025.1.86

Vapheio Cup, Mycenaean, 1630–1510 BCE
Gold
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Chora, CM 2634
VEX.2025.1.166

Headdress Armature (The Routsi Crown), Mycenaean, 1630 – 1510 BCE
Bronze, gold, silver, and organic textile
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Chora, CM 3786
VEX.2025.1.103

Conical Rhyton with Palm Trees, Mycenaean, 1520–1440 BCE
Terracotta
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Chora, CM 2890 / Photo © Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati, photo: Marie Mauzy
VEX.2025.1.211

Signet Ring with a Ritual Scene, Minoan, 1630–1440 BCE
Gold
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Chora, SN24-0030 / © Palace of Nestor Excavations, Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati Photo: Jeff Vanderpool
VEX.2025.1.81

Pendant with an Eight-Pointed Star, Mesopotamian, 1450–1400 BCE
Glass
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Messenia, Kalamata, AMM 906a.
Image © J. Paul Getty Trust, photo: Jeff Vanderpool
VEX.2025.1.101

Sealstone with a Battle Scene (The Pylos Combat Agate), Minoan, 1630 – 1440 BCE
Banded agate, gold, and bronze
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum, Chora, SN18-0112 / © Palace of Nestor Excavations, Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati / Photo: Jeff Vanderpool
VEX.2025.1.80

Man and Lioness, Mycenaean, 1630–1440 BCE
Banded agate
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Chora, SN24-0808 / Photo: © Palace of Nestor Excavations, Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati / photo: Jeff Vanderpool
VEX.2025.1.40

Krater and Stand, Mycenaean, 1410–1290 BCE
Terracotta
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum, Pylos, MP 1483, 1482
VEX.2025.1.221, 220

Rhyton with Stag and Bull Heads, Mycenaean,
1410–1240 BCE
Terracotta
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Chora, CM 235
VEX.2025.1.74

Pyxis Lid with a Lion Attacking a Griffin, Mycenaean, 1630–1440 BCE
Elephant ivory
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Chora, SN25-0016 / © Palace of Nestor Excavations, Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati Photo: Jeff Vanderpool
VEX.2025.1.49

Boar’s-Tusk Helmet, Mycenaean, 1520–1440 BCE
Boar’s tusk, set on a modern plaster head
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Messenia, Kalamata, AMM 11943.
Image © J. Paul Getty Trust, photo: Jeff Vanderpool
VEX.2025.1.182

Two Pendants with Hathor, Levantine, 1630–1440 BCE
Gold, lapis lazuli, glass, and semiprecious stones
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Chora, NSF10540 / © Palace of Nestor Excavations, Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati
Photo: Jeff Vanderpool
VEX.2025.1.55

Seal with a Griffin, Mycenaean, 1450–1400 BCE
Gold
© Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / National Archaeological Museum, Athens, P7986
VEX.2025.1.8

 
News 15Editorial TeamArt of the Ancestors, Steven G. Alpert, Asian Art, Island Southeast Asian Art, Oceanic Art, Asiatica, Ethnographica, Ethnographic Art, Art Collection, Fine Art, Primitive Art, Indonesian Art, Tribal Art, Eyes of the Ancestors, Dr. Reimar Schefold