Mycenaean civilization, the forerunner to classical Greece and the backdrop for the Illiad and the Odyssey, is best known for its lavish palaces and treasure-filled tombs.

But thanks to one enterprising researcher, we've learned that the Mycenaeans also knew how to throw a pretty mean barbeque.

For a long time, archaeologists couldn't figure out how ancient Greeks used the cookware found at excavation sites from the , which lasted from 1600 to 1100 B.C.

The mysterious wares included ceramic trays for skewered meat — known as souvlaki in Greece. But archaeologists disagreed over whether the trays were meant to be placed over a fire to catch drippings, or if they worked more like a portable barbeque pits to hold coals....