Greek archaeologists have unearthed a 3,000-year-old Mycenaean-era tomb on the island of Lefkada as part of a road-widening project. Since the island was never before thought to have connections to the Mycenaean civilization, it could fuel debate on a major prehistoric puzzle; where the homeland of Homer's legendary hero Odysseus was located. The tomb is thought to date from between 1580-1100 BC. While the nearby island of Ithaki is generally identified as the hero's kingdom, other theories have proposed Lefkada or neighboring Kefallonia.

Hardcore offroad car users now have a reason to rejoice. A Smart Car with monster tires and four-wheel drive has been developed for them: The 'Forfun' with the body of a normal Smart Fortwo mounted on an all-terrain Mercedes-Benz Unimog 406 series. Mercedes-Benz Greece, together with Greek 4x4 Rally Champion, Stefan Attart, joined forces with in designing and developing the one-off vehicle.

Frenchman Serge Girard on Tuesday completed an epic 260-day run from Paris to Tokyo, making him the sole runner to have raced the distance across all continents. The 52-year-old insurance worker also breaks the previous world record of the longest journey without a full day of rest. Girard was greeted by a small crowd and his three children, when he arrived at a hotel in Tokyo. He ran about 45 miles a day, guided by satellite through the Global Positioning System, to complete the 11,840 miles journey in over eight months. Girard set off his marathon from Paris on December 18.

An icon of the Virgin Mary has been stolen from a monastery in Greece. A police operation headed by the deputy chief of national police is underway to find the 700-year-old replica. The icon is thought to have cured the sick and protect those who believed in its powers. People believe the icon's powers will bring tragedy to both the party who stole it and the people who relied on its protection.

Christmas cards signed by Britain's royal family were sold at an auction Tuesday. The cards, that fetched a total of 5,500 pounds ($10,400), included photo cards signed by Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana. Cottees auction house in Wareham, in the south-western county of Dorset, said 13 cards sent by Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip and the late Queen Mother to the King and Queen of Greece in the late 1970s and early 1980s, were purchased by a London collector.