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The renovation of a football field in the capital of Austria led to the discovery of a serious Roman mass housing the remains of more than a hundred soldiers who died in combat.
The construction company working on the sports field in the simmer district in Vienna found a large number of human remains on the site at the end of October, according to the Department of Urban Archeology in Vienna, which is part of the Wien Museum.
The remains of at least 129 individuals were discovered during excavations by archaeologists and anthropologists of the museum and the Société d’Archaeologie d’Ex -Alquetus, the museum announced on Wednesday in a press release.
However, the total number of individuals is estimated at more than 150, because the previous construction works had moved a large number of dislocated bones in the 16 -foot long pit.
The skeletal discoveries suggest “a hasty coverage of the dead with the earth”, because the individuals were not buried in order, but with their members intertwined with each other and with a lot of lying on their stomach or sides, said the museum.
After the skeletons were cleaned and examined, the researchers discovered that they were all male, and most of them measured more than 1.7 meters (more than 5 feet 7 inch) and between 20 and 30 years old when they died.
Their dental health was generally good, with few signs of infection, but each individual analyzed injuries suffered from or near their death time.
The variety of injuries, which were mainly found in the skull, basin and torso, and made by weapons, including spears, daggers, swords and iron bolts, suggests that they were supported during the battle rather than the result of the execution – the punishment for military cowardice, said the museum.
“As the remains are purely male, it may be excluded that the discovery site was not linked to a military hospital or similar or that an epidemic was the cause of death. Bone injuries are clearly the result of the fight,” he added.
The bones were dated approximately 80 to 230 after JC.
The men were probably deprived of their weapons, because only a small number of objects were found by their side, according to the press release.
Archaeologists discovered two iron launchers, one of which was found in a hip bone.
Many hobnails have been discovered near an individual’s feet. These nails would have nailed the underside of Roman military shoes in leather, said the museum.
A radiography of the scabbard of a rusty and corroded iron dagger revealed Roman decorations typical of silver wire. This was dated between the middle of the 12th century and the beginning of the 2nd century AD.
There were also several scale armor, which became usual around 100 AD, said the museum. However, they were unusual to have more square formalities than round, he added.
A piece of cheek of a Roman helmet turned out to come from a guy who became usual from the middle of the 1st century.
“We are breathtaking by this discovery. It is a real change of game,” Kristina Adler-Wölf told CNN on Friday CNN Friday
“There are archaeological evidence of the Roman battlefields in Europe, but none of the 1st / 2nd century this with fully preserved skeletons,” she said.
About 100 AD, ritualized cremation burials were common in the Europe regions, the burials of the whole body, an “absolute exception”, according to the museum. “The discoveries of Roman skeletons of this period are therefore extremely rare,” he said.
“The unworthy nature of the burial place as well as the fatal wounds found on each individual suggest a catastrophic military confrontation, possibly followed by a hasty retreat,” added Adler-Wölfl.
Historical files show that at the end of the 1st century, under the reign of the Emperor Domitian, costly battles took place on the northern border of the Danube of the Roman Empire between the Romans and the Germanic tribes.
“This is the first time that we have had material evidence of Germanic wars” fought by Domitian between 86 and 96 AD, said Adler-Wölfl. “Before the discovery, we only knew these conflicts by certain written sources.”
“Our preliminary investigation suggests with a quasi-certainty that the grave of mass is the result of such a Roman-Germanic battle, which probably took place at 92 this,” she added.
The destruction of an entire legion is included in the disastrous defeats, which later led to the extension of the fortification line known as Danube Limes under the Emperor Trajan, according to the museum.
The Roman expansion of the city of Vindobona, which later became Vienna, “from a small military site to a large-scale legionary fortress occurred in this context,” said Adler-Wölfl.
“This would place the mass tomb in immediate conjunction with the beginning of urban life in current Vienne,” she added.
The initial survey of the Vienna team will be part of a larger international research project, said the museum. This will include DNA analysis, to shed light on the life of soldiers and their living conditions.
