A mass grave of at least 129 people from the Roman era has been discovered under a soccer field on the outskirts of Vienna, Live Science reports.
A preliminary analysis of the remains shows that most of the dead were young men between the ages of 18 and 35, and at least two-thirds showed signs of severe injuries sustained shortly before death.
The grave in the Khazenleitengasse area was discovered in 2024 and dates back to the 1st-2nd centuries AD. In ancient times, this area was part of Vindobona, an important Roman military camp on the Danube that defended the empire's borders against the Germanic tribes.
Archaeologists believe that the dead were probably victims of mass violence, possibly during a battle or a military campaign. At the same time, it is still unknown exactly where and under what circumstances the battle took place. Historical and archaeological sources do not testify to a battle in the Khazenleitengasse area during this period.
The special attention of the researchers was attracted by the nature of the injuries. On the bones were found traces of cold weapons, including swords and daggers, as well as traces of blunt blows, mainly in the area of the skull. At the same time, the marks of blows from throwing weapons are mainly concentrated in the pelvis and groin area.
According to Sheridan Strang, a bioarchaeologist at the Novetus Archaeological Society, it is most likely that the attackers, being on the ground, used spears and targeted the unprotected parts of the opponent's body when attacking from horseback. In one case, the tip of the spear was preserved directly in the pelvis of the victim.
"People who inflicted these injuries were targeting sensitive parts of the body," Strang noted.
According to Patrick Randolph-Kinney, a biological anthropologist at Uppsala University, the nature of the injuries may indicate insufficient protection of the lower part of the body by the armor, as well as the fact that the attackers knew the anatomy well and deliberately delivered blows that could incapacitate the opponent.
It is still unknown who the victims were. The researchers do not rule out that among them there could be Roman soldiers, representatives of Germanic tribes, including Marcomani, or participants of both sides of the conflict.
Preliminary DNA analysis of the 25 skeletons confirmed that they all belonged to men. At the same time, genetic data show different origins of the victims. they included people whose ancestors originated from the Apennine Peninsula, continental Europe, and at least three from the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant.
The study has not yet been peer-reviewed. Its results were presented on August 6 at the 25th conference of the European Association of Paleopathology. Scientists plan to continue studying the remains, including to find out the characteristics of the diet, health status and diseases of the victims.
