Mass graves where seven human remains were buried in Romania were discovered
Buried flintlock bullets were found next to the victims, suggesting that they were shot to end their suffering or as punishment for violating regulations during the pandemic.
Archaeologists in the city of Timisoara, capital of Romania's Timiš county, have discovered a mass grave dating from between 1737 and 1740 that contains the remains of six adults and one child. According to Romania Insider, the deceased is believed to have been the victim of a massive plague outbreak in the city of Timisoara.
The tomb was found on the construction site of a future school campus, and there are also some rather interesting Christian artifacts inside. According to archaeologists, the child was found with a Lorraine cross with two horizontal crossbars, as well as a pair of pendants depicting two Franciscan saints.
Buried flintlock bullets were found next to the remains, suggesting that they were shot to end their suffering or as punishment for violations during the pandemic
The figures of the pendants are the saints Elzear and the holy Delphina, both of whom are considered to be the guardians of newlyweds, lepers and the poor. It was the sacred Delphine pendant that helped the experts to date the tomb, since Delphine was not canonized until 1694, which greatly indicates that the seven died of that epidemic in the thirties of the eighteenth century.
Andrei Stavila, Romania archae·ologist, said: "The display of their pendants is important for our discovery. This is because the tomb cannot be traced back to 1694, which is known as the day of the Delphine Beatification, and the information that these two men were the guardians of the lepers is important to our hypothesis. ”
Since flintlock bullets were also found in the graves, the research team at the Western University of Timisoara is working to find out if the seven plague victims were shot, why they were taken to the city of Timisoara, and whether there was a relationship between them.
The Lorraine cross (1, 2) indicates that the group came from colonists in the France region, while the pendants of Elzel and Delphine (4, 5) help experts determine the time of burial
"We believe that they died of the worst plague, which has remained in the collective memory of the people for a long time and forever in the written record, the plague that swept the city of Timisoara from 1737 to 1740," André said. ”
Although it is unclear whether the seven were shot, the bullets are undoubtedly a strong piece of evidence. The team recently speculated that this may have been done to end their suffering, or to not follow the rules set by officials during the pandemic.
Experts believe that the victims are likely colonists who came to the city of Timisoara from the Lorraine region of France, as the cross suggests. As for the theory that they died of the plague of 1737, it is because the pendants place them in that particular era, and the mass graves indicate that they were victims of the plague.
Flintlock bullets found in the tomb
Andrei explained that these settlers were not the only ones in the city of Timisoara who experienced the devastating devastation of the plague. The city of Timisoara, the third largest city in Romania, is not only the main cultural and economic center of Western Romania, but also a city plagued by constant diseases.
During the Ottoman rule from 1552 to 1716, the people of the city were ravaged by typhus and plague. During the reign of the Habsburgs from 1716 to 1860, various epidemics swept through the city, and the city of Timisoara has a long history of diseases.
In the end, Andrei and his colleagues came up with some interesting theories that have a historically plausible basis, but they hope to answer several questions in the near future with further research: "They were shot." Sure, but why? Is it the child's fault? Do these seven people make a family? What's behind their disappearance? ”