The Lost Tomb of Alexander the Great
Alexander the Great lay in a famous tomb in Alexandria for centuries. Then it disappeared, and no one knows where.
What was reported
Alexander the Great died in Babylon in 323 BC. His general Ptolemy took his body as it was being carried to Macedonia and brought it to Egypt, where it was eventually placed in a magnificent tomb in the centre of Alexandria.
Roman emperors including Julius Caesar, Augustus and Caracalla visited it. After the late 4th century AD, it disappears from the records.
Explanations offered
The tomb may have been destroyed in riots, earthquakes or the city's many rebuildings, or the body may have been moved. Archaeologists and enthusiasts have made many searches, and theories place it in Alexandria, at the Siwa Oasis or even in Venice. None has been confirmed.
- When
- Lost after the 4th century AD
- Where
- Alexandria, Egypt
- Witnesses
- Ancient writers, and Roman emperors who visited
- Status
- Never found
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.