Mycenae & Tiryns

Mycenae (Μυκήνες) and Tiryns (Τίρυνθα) are the two great citadels of the Mycenaean civilisation, which dominated mainland Greece in the late Bronze Age. Both lie in the Argolid plain in the northeastern Peloponnese and together form a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In Homer's epics Mycenae is the seat of King Agamemnon and the House of Atreus.

At Mycenae the Lion Gate, crowned by two carved lions, opens into the citadel. Inside lie Grave Circle A and the remains of the palace on the hilltop. The North Gate and the Cyclopean walls of huge stone blocks complete the circuit. Outside the walls are Grave Circle B, the Tomb of Clytemnestra and the vast domed Treasury of Atreus, also called the Tomb of Agamemnon. In the 19th century Heinrich Schliemann found rich gold treasures here. Among them is the famous mask now in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. Tiryns, on a low rise near the sea, impresses with massive walls and vaulted galleries around its palace. Show more

Both sites are easily reached by car from Nafplio, which also has an archaeological museum with Mycenaean finds. They combine well with a visit to Epidaurus.