Reassessing the Royal Burials at Vergina: A Post-Alexandrian Monumentalization of Philip II in Tomb II and the Political Reconfiguration of Argead Funerary Memory

The identification of the occupants of the Royal Tombs beneath the Great Tumulus at Vergina remains one of the central problems in Macedonian archaeology. Recent bioarchaeological and radiocarbon analyses have excluded Tomb I as the burial of Philip II of Macedon, removing the osteological and chronological basis for the traditional attribution and leaving Philip’s resting place unresolved. This paper proposes an integrative reinterpretation of Tomb II as either the primary cremation or a secondary monumentalized burial of Philip II, constructed or refurbished during the political reorganization of Macedonia following the death of Alexander the Great. We argue that the tomb’s cremation rites, exceptional monumentality, dynastic iconography, equestrian sacrifices, and elite military regalia correspond more closely to the commemoration of a foundational warrior king than to the historically marginal reign of Philip III Arrhidaeus. Situating Tomb II within broader Greek traditions of heroization, secondary burial, and dynastic legitimation, the model explains the archaeological and historical evidence with fewer assumptions and generates testable predictions for future research.