In death, they were together
October 23rd, 2011 - 5:31 pm ICT by IANSLondon, Oct 23 (IANS) Human skeletons of a pair buried holding each other’s hands have been discovered in Italy by archaeologists.
The couple is believed to have been buried 1,500 years ago in a tomb inside a palace in Modena, indicating some sort of nobility, the Daily Times reported.
The woman seems to be looking lovingly at what archaeologists believe is her partner.
The discovery was made during construction work. It is believed the pair was buried at the same time between the 5th and 6th century A.D.
“We believe that they were originally buried with their faces staring into each other,” said excavation director Donato Labate.
The positioning of the skeletons suggest they were a couple, said Kristina Killgrove, biological anthropologist at the University of North Carolina.
“In antiquity, it is not surprising to learn of spouses or members of a family dying at the same time: whenever epidemics such as the Black Plague ravaged Europe, one member of the family would often die while the family was trying to bury another member,” she said.
“Whoever buried these people most likely felt that communicating their relationship was just as important in death as it was in life,” Killgrove said.
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Tags: antiquity, archaeologists, biological anthropologist, black plague, construction work, discovery, europe, excavation director, faces, human skeletons, italy, london, member of the family, modena, nobility, relationship, university of north carolina