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Researchers recently identified the following remains: roman warrior They were found stacked together in an ancient water well in Croatia, a new study has revealed.
His body was discovered outside the city walls of Mursa (now Osijek) in 2011.
In a study published in PLOS One in October, researchers linked the corpse to the Battle of Mursa in 260 AD. The conflict was won by Emperor Gallienus, who defeated the rebel commander Ingenus.
The battle was part of the Roman Crisis of the 3rd century, when the empire was on the brink of destruction due to civil wars and invasions.
Researchers used radiocarbon dating and isotope analysis to determine that the man was between 18 and 50 years old at the time of his death. The soldiers suffered various sword cuts, stab wounds, and broken bones.
Researchers recently identified the remains of Roman warriors piled up in an ancient well in Croatia (left) and linked them to the victory of Emperor Gallienus (right) at the Battle of Mursa in 260 AD. (Slavica Filipovic; Getty)
Experts also learned about the man’s lifestyle. They were on a grain-based diet and showed signs of hard labor.
Genetic testing also revealed that the soldiers were of mixed Scandinavian, Eastern European, and European descent. eastern mediterranean background.
Mario Novak, an associate professor at the Zagreb Institute of Anthropology who participated in the study, spoke to Fox News Digital about the findings.
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Some of the wounds found on the skeletons were inflicted long before the men died, and Novak said they had “healed nicely.”
“The main objective was to humiliate them to death by unceremoniously dumping them into used wells without proper care or rituals.”
“But these injuries also tell us that they lived a violent life, as most of these injuries can be related to violence, especially blunt force wounds to the skull,” he added. ”[They] Passed multiple times episodes of violence. ”
The researchers were also able to distinguish between those who died in battle (those with injuries to the front of the skeleton) and those who were subsequently executed.
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A coin was also found in the well, likely dropped by accident, as the body would have been stripped of any valuables, Novak said.
Novak said he believed the dead were “soldiers on the losing side.”
A new study has found evidence of brutal sword cuts, stab wounds and broken bones among fallen soldiers. (Mario Novak)
“The main objective was to humiliate them even in death by casually dumping them into used wells without proper care or rituals,” Novak said.
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“Our reasoning is that if these were soldiers from the winning side, they would not be buried like this, but in formal graves with full rites.”
the professor said he saw something similar graves There were 25 adult men on board, and a cow carcass was placed on top of them, also suggesting deliberate humiliation.
A mass grave discovered outside the city walls of Mursa sheds light on the turbulent crisis of the Roman Empire in the 3rd century. (Slavica Filipovic)
Novak said that after the bodies were thrown in, the well was filled in and never used again.
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“We can infer that from the position of the skeletons, because they are located one above the other, perfectly connected and not intermixed,” he said.
“If the well had been used some time after it was dropped, the skeletons would have been at the bottom and completely intermingled as the bodies disintegrated.”
“Our reasoning is that if these were soldiers from the victorious side, they would not have been buried like this, but in formal tombs with full rites,” the archaeologist said. (Slavica Filipovic)
Novak added that finding similar graves within the country’s borders is “extremely rare.” roman empire.
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“There are several known mass graves, most of which are associated with infectious disease outbreaks such as the Justinian Plague,” he said.
“War-related mass graves [and] Combat is extremely rare. ”
