A Wealthy Royal Couple Was Found Buried Together In An Ancient Palace, But The Wife Was Mysteriously Missing Her Facial Bones
Archaeologists discovered the thousand-year-old remains of a woman buried next to her husband, but after realizing that her face and head had been hollowed out, they were at a loss on what could’ve happened to the long-dead couple.
The husband and wife were unearthed in the former royal palace of Helfta in Eiselben, which is located in the German state of Saxony.
The female skeleton was just over five feet tall and was found lying on her back next to her slightly larger husband. Her facial bones were missing, while his face seemed to have remained intact.
Currently, the circumstances of their deaths are still unclear. The reason for the female skeleton’s missing facial bones is also unknown.
Archaeologists believe that the couple was once extremely wealthy and that the husband was some kind of noble figure.
According to Felix Biermann, an archaeologist from the Saxony-Anhalt State Office for Monument Preservation and Archaeology, “the accoutrement” buried with the man confirmed their royal status.
“Among other things, they found a knife, a belt set, and the fittings for a so-called official staff, such as those carried by generals, on him,” he said.
Strangely enough, the wife was not buried with a single personal item. Biermann states that it is possible the woman specifically requested not to be buried with any possessions, but this is a phenomenon that is considered highly unusual for a woman of nobility during that particular time period.
“Maybe she was already Christian, but the man was even more traditional. In Christianity, these kinds of additions were avoided,” he speculated.
Iurii – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only
Experts are working hard to try to crack this ancient mystery. The couple’s remains are now being analyzed at a laboratory to determine exactly how and when they died.
While on a similar archaeological expedition, German researchers came across the 4,500-year-old remains of a woman buried at a gravesite in 2020.
The site was located in a rural county by the name of Uckermark, which is located about sixty miles northeast of Berlin.
The way the woman was laid to rest suggested that she had a connection to ancient burial practices from Scotland.
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