Archaeological museum unveils twin babies stele for first time
As part of its “Unseen Museum” program for showcasing some of the wonderful pieces kept in its massive storage spaces, the National Archaeological Museum of Athens is presenting the “stele of the twin babies” for the first time.
The 4th century BC artifact is a fragment of a funerary monument found in a streambed in the Attica suburb of Menidi and was delivered to the museum in November 2008 by a scrap collector.
The fragment depicts two bundled twin babies in the arms of a female figure and was probably part of a tombstone that would have been erected on the grave of a woman who died in childbirth.
It is the only surviving funerary relief of the ancient Greek world depicting twin babies in the same arms, which indicates their common fate.
The “stele of the twin babies” will be on display at the NAM’s Altar Hall through Monday, May 13.
