There are world-famous sarcophagi in the ancient city of Assos, located in the Ayvacık district of Çanakkale province in Turkey. These sarcophagi, which were carved from local stones, have an extremely interesting feature. Sarcophagi are known as “flesh-eating stones” because they destroy the corpses placed in them in a short time. Normally, the corpse placed in a sarcophagus decomposes between 50 and 200 years, while the corpses placed in the sarcophagi in Assos completely disappear within 40 days.
The word “sarcophagus” comes from the Greek, meaning “meat eater”, “carnivore”. Heading the excavations in the ancient city, Çanakkale 18 Mart University Archeology Department faculty member Prof. Dr. Nurettin Arslan said that the word sarcophagus first appeared in Assos. He stated that this concept is a concept used to describe the stones found in the city.
Roman writer Plinius; In his 37-volume work titled “Natural History”, he stated that the sarcophagi made of a type of stone found in Assos completely decomposed and destroyed the corpses placed in them within 40 days. Many other sources also contain information about the stones found in the region. Thanks to the information given by Plinius; The sarcophagi made of andesite stone in Assos were exported to Lebanon, Syria, Greece and Rome in ancient times. In fact, Assos sarcophagi, thought to have sunk while being exported to Rome, were found on a sunken ship in southern Greece.
Why Sarcophagi Quickly Decay Bodies
There has been research for a long time about sarcophagi that destroy the meat in a short time like 40 days. It is not clear exactly how the sarcophagi did this. Many predictions are made on the subject. According to these estimates; It is thought that the sarcophagi made of volcanic andesite stone in the region accelerated the decay due to their structural features. Some experts are of the opinion that the aluminum found in the sarcophagi caused this.
Some researchers; He is of the opinion that the alum substance is concentrated in the sarcophagus and that this substance decomposes the corpse. During the excavations, it was revealed that the white materials found in the sarcophagi were alum. It is estimated that the people of Assos, while working on the stones, realized that the alum burned the skin, brought this material from elsewhere, put it in the sarcophagus and quickly rotted the meat. It is estimated that thanks to this method, the sarcophagi found in Assos became famous and were sent to many parts of the world.
