Full Title: Researching and evaluating the claims about the existence of Alexander the Great’s tomb and the Arc of the Covenant on the island of Thassos.


"Work is our greatest treasure..."
Andreas Kofterelis
In this article I intend to narrate to you a story. Part of this is already known to several Greek newspaper journalists and editors and also to TV presenters and other people. This particular issue, rather distorted to be honest, has already been presented to some representatives of the Ministry of Culture, of the Greek Orthodox Church and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. But no one showed any particular interest, not because the matter was not worthy to be noticed, but in my opinion, because it wasn't presented as it should be.
It concerns a series of amateur excavations that took place in the area of Aros, to the interior of Thassos which unearthed some quite strange findings. (see map 1 and 2). According to what the natives narrated to us, from a rather simple but quite cinematic treasure hunting they ended up being on the threshold of the discovery of an extremely impressive human, archaic or medieval, construction which nobody could have suspected before.
This particular construction is a reality. All the people who have contributed to the excavations are pretty sure about this. Some of them relate it with Alexander the Great's tomb whereas some others connect it even with the Arc of the Covenant and with several other eschatological scenarios. As a result, the excavation of this reputed building flirts with one of the greatest 21st century discoveries. But let's unfold the story from its beginning.


The island of Thassos in the North Aegean Sea.

Satellite photo of the island of Thassos that shows the area of Aros.

The area of Aros between the villages of Mikros and Megalos Prinos.

Closer satellite photo of the excavation area
with its accurate geographical co-ordinates.


The Beginning of the Research
I learnt about this particular discovery in the last days of June after a phone call I had from Mr. George Kofterelis, a 47 year old Thasian lieutanant of the Greek Merchant Navy. His initial, quite impressive claims triggered my interest very quickly. "I have to talk to you about something very important. I cannot tell you many things on the phone, just three things: recently discovered tomb on Thassos, Alexander the Great and Arc of the Covenant."
That is how a personal research that I carried out on the island and in my private library in Thessaloniki began. I visited the place, I gathered the necessary photos, I took down on video my interviews with the excavators, I talked with the natives of Thassos about the legends and the dreams that are related with the area and seem to be linked with the reputed discovery, I carried out a geographical analysis of the gathered elements, digitization and two dimensional representation of the findings that are no longer visible etc.
My conclusion? It is highly possible that there is something in that area that it could be from a simple treasure of an unknown age to a huge tomb monument. I haven't found all the necessary information that would help me to reach a safe conclusion although I had enough to say that the whole discovery deserves our attention.. and the necessary actions as to come to an end.
"No one can describe the grandeur that we have encountered in there! Three azure blocks were amongst the most impressive findings!"
G. Kofterelis

"There is something there for sure that is the outcome of a great craft. And certainly it is important because in our opinion no one would create something that huge for nothing."
F. Papanthimos
Searching for a Lost Treasure...
The story that I'm about to tell you isn't in any case simple. It took me several hours of talking with the same people in order to figure out what was going on and to put their loose and vague narrations into the right order. But how has everything started? Let's give to G. Kofterelis, one of the five persons of the team in Thassos who carried out the excavations, the opportunity to tell us what happened.
The findings were found into a ravine that I used to visit for many years every time I disembarked from the ship and I came to the island. [see plan 1] In one of these walks I noticed a huge rock canting in such an angle that it was rather astonishing that it didn't fall."

Two-dimensional representation of the excavation site.


"In 2000 I visited the area with Kostas S., a friend of mine who was aware of the existence of two quite strange marks, of two crosses actually, on a nearby cliff. [see photos 5, 6a and 6b] When I was a boy I've heard many stories about marking with several signs the spots where treasures were hidden. And since the canting rock was across these two crosses, we thought that there might be a connection. It seemed too rare to be random. This thought made us to begin searching in this area. (October 2000)

Side of the cliff where the 1st sign, the two crosses was found.

The 1st sign: the two crosses on the top of the cliff right across the excavation site.


Evidence on the Existence of Human Construction
"In this point Filippos Papanthimos (and later his brother, Dimitris) joined the team. We tried with the help of Philippos to bring down the rock by pulling it with wire and shear legs. That was proved to be impossible due to the rock's size and the fact that it was too deep routed to the ground. Hence, we decided to dig under the rock in order to break its base. [see detail 1-1]



We were grubbing the rock for 2 days when we finally discovered that it was almost one big rock combined by two smaller ones united in such a way that it seemed like being one-piece. That took us some time to realize it since the job that was done was very exquisite!"
F. Papanthimos agrees to this point: "It is too hard to unite so perfectly stones" whereas Mr. Kofterelis continues:
"The evidence that in this spot was hidden a human construction came later, when we found a bigger rock that kept us to this stage of unearthing for about 3.5 years before we discovered the cave. On this rock we found carven by a human hand a dog’s head! [see photo 14a]"

This particular rock with the dog's head on it is the greatest proof that humans had been involved somehow with these parts of the area.


But it seemed weird to me the fact that they were no photographs of such an important evidence. The answer that I received was rather striking. "We were looking for a treasure without having a legal permission! We didn't have any reason for taking photos."


Photos taken during the excavations in the area of Aros.


The continuation of the excavation was impressive.
"After having broken the wall -as it was proved to be- and we took out 2-3 united stones, we opened a space of about one meter where there were more big rounded stones, which were chocked and ready to get out of their place. [see detail 1-2] That was actually the second surprise. So, we moved them very easily by taking out the chocks!



Behind these rocks was also soil. We didn't dare though to go towards the hill because we didn't think that the whole place would be that big. So, we had chosen the easier path, to dig under the stones.
Cutting the stones trying to find different spots in the ground and so to find eventually the treasure, we didn't manage to find any difference apart from some layers of clay earth and argil. Later we found that these layers were covering a whole cave.
At this point we found ourselves into a difficult situation. We sent some specimens of the earth to a chemistry lab in Kavala and they answered back that this particular clay although it could be found in nature is quite rare. After such an answer we were sure that something was going on.
There the 1st period of the excavation stops, in the spring of 2001 for various reasons that made us unable to continue."


The Defence Insulation and the Stone Drawer
The 2nd period (October 2001-March 2002) wasn't that revealing since it brought to light some evidence but of minor importance, like some well carven stones which couldn't have been nature-made or some hand-made marks on the canting rock previously unnoticed. [see detail 1-3]



Just before the beginning of the 3rd period (October 2002-March 2003) Angelos X. joined the team. Around this time they discovered the 5th mark which was a layer of an insulation material which covered a large area.
As G. Kofterelis says: "The gutter pipe, let's give it this name, was proved later to be an insulation material which was used probably as the first defence zone against humidity."

Side of the ravine next to the excavation site.

Big and solid rock over a mixture of red clay and stones. According to Mr Kofterelis this is the best evidence that human hand has formed this seemingly natural hill.



When I asked Mr. Kofterelis what they found he answered me:
"We found between the two layers of red clay this specific material which was 70cm thick. It was "silver soil", that is how we call it on the island, found later in many places and we finally discovered that they used it for insulation against humidity, temperature conditions, etc.
At the time, we haven't yet realized that it was an insulation material and we decided to follow the gutter pipe in order to discover the treasure. As you might understand, we found nothing because it wasn't a road that we had to follow but a defence construction that we had to pass through.
Finally, the last day we dug in another spot where something unexpected was found! We found a round stone of 60cm gauge and behind this a built wall [A533;] which was created by perfectly carven stones united with red clay. One of them having triangular shape was getting in and out like a drawer. Over and under this stone there were other stones in order to hold it as if it was a stone drawer! [see plan 2]
There we stopped the excavations until the October, 2003 since the work was getting very serious."

Two-dimensional representation of the stone drawer.


The Dog Head was a Map!
The 3rd period of the excavations revealed more things. From the beginning, the team in Thassos came upon some evidence that implied that the 4th mark, the carven dog head (see box 1) was in fact a map! How? A break on the carven design of the 4th mark resembled the triangular stone/drawer that they had previously found.
"Supposing that this triangular break symbolizes the triangular stone of the drawer and that the carven dog head is a map then we must have been already in the middle of the discovery" , says G. Kofterelis. [photo 14b]

The stone with the dog head translated by the team of Thassos.


They estimated the distance between the carven stone (dog head) and the stone drawer to 3.5 metres. So, if they follow this map and they continue digging in a distance of 3.5 metres on a certain angle they should come upon something new.
"Having already digging for about 1-2 months and reaching the 3.5 metres the red clay suddenly disappeared and its place took the insulation material which was in a vertical position. As far as I know, although I am not an expert in geology, the several layers are not supposed to be in a vertical position but to a horizontal one. It is obvious that this finding was once again man-made." explains the 47 year old lieutenant and continues...
"The layer covered a stone which later proved to seal the gate of a cave. This rounded stone was sealed with a glue-like material that we had removed using chisel and lever." [see plan 3]

Two-dimensional representation of the round stone that obstructed the gate.



The Gate and the Cave
All these took place in February, 2004. The team of Thassos following the map continued getting in the cave where they found another huge rock. In the meantime, they had also encountered some other interesting findings there.
As F. Kofterelis says: "It was later proved that the glue around the rock was another insulation material since in the interior of the cave the soil was rather dry, as no humidity penetrated this deep interior! We had the impression that even the slight fire from a lighter could cause a fire! It was so much protected that it must have been definitively intentional.
Moreover, we found more walls into the cave, more round stones that were looking to the walls and obviously more gates whereas on the roof were flagstones to stop the dirt from falling off the roof etc. There we also found three azure blocks and a stone carven again by a human hand. [see plan 4]

After having removed the stone and having opened the cave. On the bottom of the photo we see part of the impressive findings.


When the Shovels become Bulldozers!
"At this point we realized that the whole discovery was important and we couldn't continue working only with shovels. We were afraid that if we continued digging like that eventually the roof of the cave would fall over our heads. We asked help from a lawyer who advised us to report the discovery to the authorities" G. Kofterelis explains.
So, the cave was found on March 6th, 2004 and the 12th of the same month it was reported to the Archaeological Commission and to the Byzantine and Pre-Christian Antiquities Board in order to give them the appropriate register numbers.
Furthermore, thanks to a lawyer in Thessaloniki they found a group that was interested in financing the continuation of the excavations. As a result, in the 4th of June they got the necessary permission for the 1st excavation from the Agrarian Commission of Kavala, 905 register number. So they started working, this time using also an excavator and a bulldozer. The excavator could not continue into the interior of the cave since there were some props which were not included into the finance agreement. So, they focused mostly to the gate revealing more spots covered by the fore mentioned insulation material.

"A meter away from the point we stopped we found a wall covered with the insulating material which was too hard since the excavator could not extract any stone from it." said the local lieutenant.
"At this point the team from Thessaloniki instead of congratulating us asked us not to continue digging to this direction because there was no wall! Which was weird because we were there watching it whereas they were in Thessaloniki! We decided to respect their wish since they were financing the whole project and we continued digging to other places following their suggestions."

Nothing impressive was discovered, apart from some carven stones which according to G. Kofterelis were surely chamber roofs or tunnels. The financing (2,500 euros) ran short and on June, 7-8^th they had to stop the works at the area and restore immediately the place, according to the permission they got.

The Tunnel that leads into the Hill!
For the 2nd excavation the money (2,500 euros) came from the team of Thassos on October 9 of the same year with register number 11037. From the beginning, their efforts were focused on breaking the wall that was found during the 1st excavation that which the group from Thessaloniki didn't allow them to break before.
The 47 year old lieutenant continues: "We were expecting to find a wall that hides something else. As we figured out it didn't close the entrance to some chamber but it actually created a tunnel. The side of the cave, which was 4-5 metres thick, covered this second wall that we had just found. So, it created a tunnel that was getting into the hill.
We continued digging towards the interior of the hill and the more we were digging the more we were convinced that it was an arc, "the brow" as we called it. Cutting the arc we observed that it was retaining the same shape for many metres upwards. In a few words, it was an arc which created a tunnel. [see plan 5]

The vertical cut on the tunnel.

To the right and the left of the tunnel were carven stones which created an aligned base. We entered further into the scaled tunnel which became more and more deep and we figured out that the props were necessary if we wanted to avoid being buried."

The 2nd excavation ended on October, 11^th with the restoration of the excavation place. The need for props required a new and bigger sponsorship. They finally found a new sponsor from Chalkidiki and so they took permission by the authorities on May 30, 2005. The presumable cost was estimated to be about 16,000 euros and they intended to follow the tunnel which entered further into the hill. But due to several disagreements amongst the members of the group of Thassos, the 3rd excavation was cancelled on May, 12th.


The Great Alexander's Tomb
According to the team of Thassos there is in the area a human construction that goes deep into the hill, a fact that makes the former assumption of it being merely a hidden treasure to seem awkward. But this doesn't allow us to suggest that this might be the Great Alexander's tomb. But let's see what made the researchers come to such a conclusion.
G. Kofterelis explains to us one more time:
"First of all, the bulk of the construction seems to be so big that only an emperor could have ordered its building. In my opinion, only someone who would have such power over the area could have built it.
Secondly, according to the team of Thessaloniki and to people who work in the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki the two crosses that we found had probably a particular symbolism and use. One of them was an imperial cross whereas the other was a funerary one. If we combine them together we get the phrase: "dead emperor". And according to these people the crosses are of Genoese origin. [photo 5, 6a and 6b]

Side of the cliff where the 1st mark of the two crosses was found.

The 1st mark: the two crosses on the side of the cliff across the excavation spot.


Thirdly, the area of Aros is part of the apex of an isosceles triangle that creates with the town of Filippoi and the lion of Amphipolis." [see map 5a and 5b]

The isosceles "Macedonian" triangle.


Now let's try to evaluate the given information. The first argument cannot be validated due to the lack of photographs from the excavation site. As far as the second argument is concerned unfortunately the two teams are no longer in touch and so it is impossible to verify the story from the members of the Thessaloniki team.
However, some interesting answers could be given to the third argument. The geographical analysis showed that the three places make truly an isosceles triangle whereas the historical analysis reveals more elements.
It is known that in Ancient Greece it was a common practice to create sacred places in specific areas creating many times triangles. The ancient city of Filippoi was founded in 356 B.C and the ancient Amphipolis in 437 BC which means that they have been created before Alexander the Great''s death. We can assume that the triangle was created on purpose and they chose the area of Filippoi for the obvious reasons. The lion of Amphipolis was a tomb monument, probably the place where they were buried three of the most important Macedonian generals (Narsis, Androsthenes and Laomedonas). So it is highly possible that the apex of Aros is also a tomb monument of equal importance to that of Amphipolis. Only then this "macedonian" triangle makes sense.


The lion of Amphipolis which makes a triangle with the Filippoi and Aros! Moreover, according to Mr. Kofterelis the lion looks towards Thassos.


The End of the Excavations
But why no one continues the excavations? G. Kofterelis says clearly: "What we expect is to find some people who will believe that everything we say is true in order to start the next excavation.
We would like to find people who will have the appropriate machines to help us map the area. Mr. Poulianos told me during a conversation we had that there are some machines which can map an area and that these machines mapped the cave of Petralona even before they got in. They had scanned it from above. This process, known as subsoil mapping, can scan areas in great depth and find any existing rooms, walls, passages and everything that there is under there."
F. Papanthimos on the other hand states: "We are sure that there is something in the area, something important. In my opinion, the experts should come in order to reach safe conclusions. 1000% there is something there, but why should anyone believe in me? I'm definitely sure that a special machine will reveal many things."

The team needs desperately to find some sponsors to finance the 3rd excavation which is estimated to be the last. According to G. Kofterelis "Unfortunately we cannot finance on our own the props crew. We assure you that even from the 1st day of the excavations we will have found the carven stone with the dog head on it, the cave, the archway which is 7-8 metres underground, etc.
And in order not to be accused of cheating anybody, we are willing to pay for all the costs before each one of these elements will be found. We want to reassure in that way any possible sponsor that his money will not be lost.
And one last thing... personally, I do not wish to get any legal commission from the findings because I truly believe that it is not just a lost treasure but something much more important. We didn't end up there by accident, but something led us. The place is being “watched”... It is something of great importance!" [see boxes 6 and 7]


This Case must be Solved!
I prefer to stand on the words of F. Papanthimos who during the interview he gave to me told me while he was trying to explain to me the findings: "You cannot understand unless you see them with your own eyes."
Judging from what I have seen and heard I tend to believe that there is something quite interesting in the area which deserves to be noticed and be searched further. Though I think that the claims about the tomb of Alexander the Great and the Arch of the Covenant are groundless due to the lack of evidence.
As I usually quote: "Under each hill might be buried an "Acropolis" What matters the most is to prove that "your" hill is the one that hides the Acropolis and not the other's. Anyhow, this case deserves to be solved eventually.



[Footnotes:]
-G. Kofterelis' contact information is in the writer's disposal. I apologize in advance for any omissions.
-The research on the spot was realized for Pytheas Team (Ομάδα Πυθέας) with the valuable help of Maria Sarigiannidou.
-Any people that are not mentioned in the article after their request are in the writer's disposal.

---

[Further Information:]
[Box 1: The 6 Signs]
1st Sign: The Two Crosses.
2nd Sign: The Canting Rock.
3rd Sign: The Two Triangles on the Rock.
4th Sign: The Carven Dog Head on the Stone.
5th Sign: Insulation Material.
6th Sign: Stone Drawer.
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[Box 2: Dreams, Visions and Metaphysical Evidence]
A sequence of strange dreams related to this matter gives food for many interesting thoughts. However, they cannot be considered as satisfactory evidence since they are quite questionable. They have though their own unique importance.
One of them reinforces the claim that under this area lies the Alexander the Great's tomb. Mrs Chrysoula Koftereli, of maiden name Souris and habitant of the area Prinos, Thassos narrates to us: "These days I had an argument with my sister Alexandra for some property matters.. When I lied to bed and I was about to fall asleep I said to myself: "What have you done to me , Alexandra!". At the same moment a voice answered me back: "not Alexandra, but Alexandros" and the voice repeated "Alexandros and two kings!". All these happened while I was still awake.
In my dream now I was into a huge cave [not like the own that they found during the excavations] that seemed endless. All around the cave there were golden boxes and a light came from three united candles. Some people let me walk up to a point and then dragged me out.
There they told me that when the gate of the cave will be opened dreadful things, strong wind, thunders, war in heaven will take place that others will be able to see and others not. But I shouldn't be afraid because it would be something that nature will expect though it would be advisable to go away from there since the whole earth will shake not just in Thassos, but in Kavala, in Greece and all over the world for all people to realize that what comes is so much important."
Mrs Koftereli doesn't know to read or write and according to her son it was the first time that she was expressed like that. She had this dream in 2004.

One year later, in 2005, she dreamed this: "I was walking towards the village Kazaviti (Megalos Prinos) when I saw three men dressed in white tunics with golden crosses embedded on them wearing helmets on the head following my path. When I met them they told me to leave the place peacefully and not to tell anything to anyone and that it was forbidden to continue on this way!"

At the end of 2004, G. Kofterelis, who doesn't hide his belief in the Eastern Orthodox Dogma, dreamed: "I was walking down the road heading to the excavation site holding an old-style cross carven with diamonds when I saw three shadows appearing from the ravine to the place. One of them became clearer and stood between me and the other two. It took the form of a man and focused its attention to the spot where we stopped in the 2nd excavation and said: "This is the only way."

Of similar interest is also the double dream a woman, named as Konstantina, who belongs to the close circle of the members of the team and who was well aware of the team's efforts, had.
It was in the beginnings of 2004 while she was in Athens that she dreamed Christ standing on the hill of the excavations waving at her to come closer. When she approached he took a twig and hit with it the place where he was standing as if he wanted to tell her "look here." A few months later she dreamed Christ again standing on the yard of her house in Athens, approaching at her door and starting to talk in a strange dialect. The only phrase that she understood in Greek was this: "remember the twig."

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[Box 3: The Place is Guarded from Above]
Various conversations with the habitants of Thassos, for example with the famous and very kind 98-year old singer/lyricist Mr Stavros Karamaniolas, revealed to me a sequence of traditions related with the area.
To begin with, many people, who either had a personal experience themselves or have heard stories from older people, report various incidents where saints appeared around the area of Aros, particularly Saint George and Saint Dimitrios (both military saints of the Orthodox dogma). Many people believe "that the place is guarded from above".
Relevant to this matter is also the legend about "the hole of Saint George" in the church of Saint George, which is less than a kilometre away from the excavation site. According to the legend somewhere inside the church there is a hole that leads to an archway. The person who will ever find it will go mad.
But as Mr Angelos X. states correctly: "This whole story is a legend. But usually all these myths hide a minor truth behind them. If not all of them, at least some of them. Nobody knows from where this archway starts, but we know that it leads into the church. We haven't found it yet, this is only what the legend says."
Some older habitants of Thassos report several "visits" of strangers (that is of people who didn't come from Thassos) in the area of Aros. Characteristically they said that around 1955 "some strangers were searching officially there".
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[Box 4: The Arc of the Covenant?]
The story though doesn't end here for some of the members of the team of Thassos but also includes a possible discovery of the Arc of the Covenant. For example G. Kofterelis argues:
"First of all, we should take into consideration the dreams. All of them are related with God. Moreover, there are many legends on the island that claim that the place is guarded by saints, by higher powers. There is a Christian connection that doesn't link that well with Alexander the Great.
Also, close to the excavation site there is a weird rock on which we found every now and then new symbols, as if they are written by themselves. In 1997, the first time I visited the area with Kostas S., the rock had an orthodox cross on it. In April-May of 2004 Filippos and I found on the same place an oblong square. After 2004, its place took a ΘΙ', which now tends to become ΘΣ'. [see photo 9a&b]

Maria Sarigiannidou, member of the Pytheas Team, takes photos of the place.

The rock that generates the symbols, according to Mr Kofterelis. Various people on various times have seen in the same place the exact symbols: cross, rectangular, ΙΣ and ΘΣ.


Nowadays, or at least for now (July), there is the symbol ΘΣ on the rock.


All these can't be meaningless. For example, in the book of Revelation in chapter ΘΙ' its author says that the key of the abyss will be given to a star that will fall upon the earth. With this key the abyss will be opened and the Second Coming will begin.
That is why I believe, if I am not just crazy, that all these dreadful things which are about to come are closely related with the discovery of the tomb in Thassos. And maybe this is the reason why we should continue with the excavations, in order to give an answer to all these people.
According to some stories Alexander the Great discovered in one of his expeditions the lost Arc of the Covenant. It seems weird, I know, but in my opinion I think it's rather possible. Since all the dreams are related with God, the crosses, Christ etc. We cannot go round these signs.
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[Box 5: An... Alternative View]
"I believe that all these are merely fairytales.. and this is just my personal view! Surely there are things to be discovered, the cave is full of things. Also, if we consider carefully all the signs that where leading from one place to another it’s highly possible that something is in there. We followed them and we finally found something. But the given interpretations [that is Alexander the Great's tomb, the Arc of the Covenant etc] are nothing but fairytales." Mr Angelos X says
and continues... "The things that we found inside the cave have nothing to do with these fake stories. This is another story, but the findings inside the cave are real."
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[Box 6: Archaeological Commission and Tomb]
After May 12-13th, 2004 when the discovery has already been reported to the authorities, the Archaeological Commission sent an archaeologist to validate the findings and to check if they have any archaeological interest. His answer was negative.
When I asked about this the team of Thassos they gave me these answers:
"The archaeologist said that it seemed to be constructed but he couldn't tell when it was built, or what it was. It was clear though that it was a construction. Later he said characteristically that it might be a cave-breach,” reports F. Papanthimos.
"The archaeologist wasn't clear. He must have seen what all of us have seen. There was clearly a gate in front of him. How didn't he notice it? In my opinion, he protected specific interests,” Mr Kofterelis explains whereas the others disagree with him
"No, I cannot suggest something like that.. it's beyond what I know. I think that he did just his job. After all, the archaeologist hadn't seen everything that we have seen; he saw neither gate, nor stuck stones, nor anything particular. He didn't enter the cave in order to look inside" says F. Papanthimos and Angelos X. seems to agree. "If anyone wanted to cover the discovery he could characterize the area of high archaeological interest and prohibit in this way the continuation of our excavations which no one did."

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[Box 7: Famous People Aware of the Matter]
Various famous people have been informed, personally or via representative, for the matter: father G. Metallinos, father Th. Zissis (Theology Professor, AUTH), father Prokopios Eparch of Philippoi, Neapolis and Thassos, Makis Triantafyllopoulos' journalist team, Mr G. Traggas, Mrs L. Kaneli, Mrs M. Latsi, Mr Emfietzoglou, Mr Papathemelis, Mr Chryssohoou of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, journalist Mr Podaras of Mr Chardavellas' team, Mr Ioannidis (N.D. member of Parliament), journalist Mr Dimaras (PASOK member of parliament), Mr Antonakis (Eleftheros Typos), Mr Rizos (Adesmeftos Typos), Mr Pissanos, Mr Anagnostopoulos (Ministry of Culture), the Prior of the Monastery of Palea Penteli, Mr Mpeksis (publisher of Ichor Magazine) etc.
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[Box 8: An Expert Decoded the Signs]
The decoding that follows has been done by a famous writer["Χαμένοι Θησαυροί στην Ελλάδα" ("Lost Treasures in Greece")ed. Archetypo 2005 and, "Κρυμμένοι Θησαυροί στην Ελλάδα και στα Βαλκάνια - Κώδικες, Σύμβολα και 'Αγνωστες Διαδρομές" ("Hidden Treasures in Greece and the Balkans - Codes, Symbols and Lost Paths"), Archetypo 2007] and member of the forum of Metafysiko.gr Mr Ioannis Mpaimpakis.
"The crosses we see in the photos indicate that there must be two tombs (where the signs are), belonging to members of the same family or group. The distance between the two signs is, more or less, 5 to 10 metres. The point of interest is either across the crosses or towards the east.
The tombs must lie buried and in their interior they might find signs of the possible hiding either in a cave or an underground room. The treasure, if it hadn't been found in the past, must be in there although it might not be easy to see it. It is highly possible that they could find more signs once they get in there.
But they should be very careful for the fear of any traps. Now, the head that they have found might point to the direction it looks to, or opposite.
All these things must be Turkish and nothing more. It is possible that the Turks found an ancient place and used it. All the marks show that it was the Turks. The triangles must refer undoubtedly to the entry of a cave but since I haven't seen any photo I cannot accept them as signs.
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[Additional Photos:]


Approaching the pier of Prinos, Thassos.

Reaching the excavation site with our guide G. Kofterelis.

Big carven rocks hand- made according to G. Kofterelis or natural creations according to Angelos.

N. Koumartzis researching in the area of Aros.

G. Kofterelis explains why he is so convinced that something is going on there.

Taking the necessary photos under the 1st sign, the two crosses.

G. Kofterelis after the research on the spot in the area of Aros.


F. Papanthimos, member of the team of Thassos, during the interview that he gave to us.

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Translated by: melian

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