During an otherwise routine renovation of a Vienna soccer field, construction crews unearthed a startling secret buried for centuries—a mass grave from the 1st-century Roman Empire that may be among the only ones of its kind. The remains are thought to belong to warriors who were battling Germanic tribes, and "within the context of Roman acts of war, there are no comparable finds of fighters," said archaeological dig leader Michaela Binder. As the AP explains, Roman Empire soldiers were generally cremated until the 3rd century.
Indeed, "there are huge battlefields in Germany where weapons were found. But finding the dead, that is unique for the entire Roman history," said Binder. Kristina Adler-Wölfl, head of archaeology for Vienna, echoed that to Deutsche Welle, saying: "Body burials were an absolute exception. Finds of Roman skeletons from this period are therefore extremely rare." The excavation confirmed 129 bodies—all belonging to males ages 20 to 30—with estimates suggesting over 150 victims could be buried at the Austrian site. Each one had evidence of battle wounds sustained by swords and lances, particularly to the head, torso, and pelvis.
Carbon dating placed the bones in the 80 to 130 AD span, and the timeline was backed up by other finds within the grave, including nails that were specific to Roman military shoes and type of dagger used between the mid-1st century and early 2nd century. Thus far only one victim has been confirmed as a Roman warrior; archaeologists plan to use DNA and strontium isotope analysis to try to identify which side the remaining victims fought for. (This content was created with the help of AI. Read our AI policy.)
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
