„Książęcy grób” w Polsce ukazuje dawne „elitarne” zwyczaje
Według nowego badania starożytny „książęcy grób” odkryty w Polsce rzuca światło na elitarne społeczeństwo w czasach rzymskich.
Zdjęcie: Marcin Szmigiel, UnSplash
The Goths, a group of Germanic tribes, were famed for being fierce adversaries of the Roman Empire. Detailed accounts of their “barbaric” conquests — and their infamous sacking of Rome in 410 A.D. — can be found throughout historical texts.
[–>
However, little has been passed down about their social structure, leaving numerous questions for modern-day researchers. How did they organize themselves? Was their society just as stratified as the Romans?
[–>
The recent discovery of a well-preserved Gothic grave in Poland sheds light on these questions and provides evidence for the presence of an “elite” group of rulers, according to a study published in April in the journal Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences.
[–>[–>
The burial site was found in Czarnówko, a village in the far north of Poland, in 2021. It was linked to the Wielbark culture, a Gothic society that dwelled in modern-day Poland between the first and fifth centuries A.D.
[–>
The grave, known as feature 1927, constituted a sandy pit, at the bottom of which an urn was found.
[–>
Upon being examined in a laboratory, the vessel was revealed to contain “very well preserved” cremated human remains.
[–>
Also discovered were a trove of funerary artifacts, including a golden pendant, a silver-plated shell pendant, a pair of silver bracelets and a glass vessel of Roman origin, researchers said. Animal bones, too, were found, indicating an animal carcass was placed on the funeral pyre.
[–>
Analyses of the “princely grave” indicate the deceased individual was a woman who belonged to the upper stratum of society.
[–>
She appears to have been born in Pomerania, a historic region of northern Poland, where she likely lived into late adulthood.
[–>
Her elevated status — possibly achieved through inheritance — is of “particular interest” as the Wielbark culture is believed to have been patriarchal.
[–>
“The findings also coincide with current knowledge about the kinship structure of Germanic communities, in which social rank was passed down through generations,” researchers said.
[–>
The charred bones also indicate the woman lived a lengthy and healthy life, free from malnutrition or infectious diseases — a rarity at the time.
[–>
“Her longevity might have been somehow promoted by a high social status, which possibly included a more balanced diet, regular hygiene and lack of stress related to physical work – amenities often inaccessible to most people living in ancient times,” researchers said.
[–>
This apparent stratification within society may have been influenced by the Romans, who were strictly divided by class, researchers said, noting that further studies should be conducted.
[–>[–>[–>
