In early Minoan times the dead were buried in rock cavities as, for example, in the caves of the Kilada ton Nekron (Valley of the Dead) in Zakros. During the Prepalatial Period the first vaulted tombs (tholotos tafos) appeared. They were round and were built from large stones so that each stone projected slightly further inwards than the one immediately below it until they all met overhead, thus closing the vault. Vaulted tombs were used by many families (or a village) over a number of years for successive burials. The vaulted tomb at Lebena (Lendas, southern Iraklion) is an example of a tomb of this period. In some other cases, rectangular tombs instead of round tombs were used. During this period in Mochlos the burials were in small tombs in caves or hewn rock.