The settlement of Vafio is located at a distance of 6 km from Sparta.
It is built at an altitude of 175 metres and has about 70 inhabitants. At the area of Vlissidi, north of the Paleopyrgi hill, the famous "Treasure of Vafio" was discovered inside a sizeable Mycenaean tomb (1500-1450 BC).
It is the largest Mycenaean tomb that has been discovered in all of Laconia. From the beginning of the 19th century until today, it has been of interest to the scientific community. At the place where the vaulted tomb was found (at the northeastern top of the hill), it is speculated that the ancient city of Faris had been built, which is mentioned by Homer and was one of the six cities that formed the Archaic hexapolis (six cities) of Laconia.
The vaulted tomb is above the ground, while an artificial mound has been formed around it. The road to the grave is almost 30 metres long. The tomb's entrance, which was not blocked when it was discovered (the tomb had been looted), is built of large hewn stones, while the joints are covered with mortar. Fortunately, the gravediggers did not notice the existence of a pit in the ground of the chamber, and so the precious objects made of gold, ivory and precious stones were saved. Today, the treasure is in the Archaeological Museum of Athens. It consists, among others, of 42 seal stones, knives, spearheads, two gold rings, a gold-plated sword, curved circular discs belonging to psychostasis (soul) scales, two alabaster vessels and a silver vase.
The skeleton of the so-called "Prince", discovered during the excavation done by Christos Tsountas in 1888, was not in good condition. Eighty spherical amethyst beads in two rows formed a necklace at the point of his neck and chest. At the ends of the hands, on each side, 12 seal stones were found as well as two golden cups in each hand. These are the two famous "Golden Cups of Vafios", with catalogue numbers 1758 and 1759. These cups, decorated with representations of bull hunting, testify to the high performance in metalworking of the time. More specifically, the first cup is decorated with scenes of bull hunting whose capture is done with a net while the hunters are injured. The second cup depicts a cow whose love call leads the bulls into captivity. The two cups are considered the works of art of the same craftsman, although the first seems to have been made with greater care. They are decorated with the so-called printed technique (repousse), which is one of the oldest and most widespread techniques in the metalwork of the Aegean culture and requires artisans with great skill. The handles were made separately. There are morphological differences between the two cups. The first cup presents features of Mycenaean art, while the second is closer to the natural Minoan tradition. Finally, the density of the depictions and the perfection of the scenes shown rank them among the most significant achievements of ancient Greek culture. Since there is a mural with a similar theme in the Palace of Knossos (which, however, concerns a sport), makes many argue that, perhaps, they are both creations of the Minoan era.
