A 1,000-year-old grave in Latvia may contain the remains of six locals who died in a violent event. The new study examines a burial at the Chunkani-Drengeri necropolis near the Gulf of Riga, where four men, a boy and a girl were found.
Radiocarbon dating places the grave in the second half of the 9th century - a period that coincides with the beginning of the Viking Age. This is one reason why scientists believe the six may have been victims of an attack. Another possibility is that they died in a battle with a neighboring community.
“We will never know for sure whether they were killed in an attack, but it remains a possibility, given the dating of the grave and the fatal injuries found on three of the men,“ said Elina Petersone-Gordina, an archaeologist at the University of Latvia and co-author of the study.DNA reveals family link
Genetic analysis shows that the boy was the son of one of the men. Another man was a third-degree relative. The father, the relative and another of the men suffered injuries from sharp objects, possibly an axe or sword.
The remains showed injuries consistent with violent death, but the cause of death of the other three people is not clear. Therefore, the study does not prove that all of them were killed in a Viking raid.
Buried according to local customs
The grave is one of hundreds in the Chunkani-Drengeri necropolis, discovered in 1924. The site contains burials from the 7th to 11th centuries, and most of the graves were intended for one person. In the grave in question, the six were laid to rest together and with traditional burial gifts.
The woman was buried with her head pointing northwest. The four men and the boy are arranged in a row next to her, with their heads facing southeast - a feature also found in other local burials from the same period.
According to the researchers, this shows that the buried were part of the local community and were buried with respect, despite their likely violent deaths. Genetic data point to local Baltic origin. The six belonged to the Semigallians - an agricultural people who inhabited the fertile plains of the region during the Iron Age.
Sources: btvnovinite.bg, livescience.com