She still has her shoes and precious jewelry...the discovery of ancient skeletons that baffled scientists
Still with her shoes and precious jewelry
An ancient Roman cemetery was uncovered during a two-year excavation carried out to install a solar power plant near the Italian capital, Rome. The find contains 67 skeletons inside 57 decorated graves.
Archaeologists were puzzled by this discovery, which is believed to date back to between the second and fourth centuries, for several reasons, including the discovery of skeletons decorated with gold jewelry and expensive leather shoes inside tombs designed to mimic earthly homes.
A happy surprise for the authorities
The discovery, which took place on a 52-acre plot of land near the ancient city of Tarquinia, north of Rome, was a surprise to the authorities, despite the region's fame for this type of archaeological finds.
The discovery included silver amber rings engraved with the initials of the dead, precious stones, clay artifacts, coins, and amulets, in addition to clothing, necklaces, and gold earrings.
"We found many skeletons still wearing their expensive socks and shoes," the lead archaeologist for the site's excavation, Emanuele Giannini, told CNN .
"All this wealth, and the fact that the bones showed no sign of stress or physical labor, (leads us to believe) that these people were not local farmers, but rather members of the upper class of Roman families coming from the cities," Giannini added.
Giannini noted that "preventive archeology" techniques, such as field surveys and test trenches, have been used to identify possible ancient underground structures. He explained: "We had a simple idea that there might be some treasure there, and historical sources mentioned the location of a postal station for travelers near the place."
“Building tombs for entire families is a typical ancient Roman feature, but (this particular find) is unique when it comes to its interior design, which shows wealth and status,” Giannini explained.
The results of the excavation, which began in 2022, are being preserved as they were found, and many of them will be on display at the Santa Severa Castle in the coastal town of Santa Marinella.
But the skeletons are subject to analysis to determine their origins, and will only be displayed after forensic tests.
Whatever its source, authorities are sure more hidden wonders will emerge as excavations for the solar park move to another nearby site.
Another striking thing, Giannini said, is that the majority of the tombs discovered are communal, with them built to contain at least two people who likely had a family connection.
Some skeletons were found hugging each other.
The interiors of many tombs originally featured elaborate fabric linings, or were surrounded and covered with tiles or clay pieces as small houses.
Source : websites