Hand-holding skeletons from the 6th century: "Lovers of Modena" were men

Ten years ago, a special find fascinated the archaeological experts: Two "skeletons" who had been in the ground for 1500 years holding hands, were known as "lovers of Modena".

In the accounts of the find, which was accidentally made during construction, there is talk of eternal love and bodies huddled together. The SPIEGEL had also reported on the excavation of a cemetery from the period between the 4th and 6th century AD.

However, the interpretation of the find as a symbol of eternal love between man and woman was a bit premature: Due to the poor state of preservation, the gender of the dead could not be determined with certainty.

Researchers from the University of Bologna have now set their sights on the old bones again. They used a method in which the protein from the enamel is used for chromosome analysis. Thus, indications of the sex of a dead person are possible. The result: Both deceased were men.

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Skull openingsSteinzeit-Arzt im Praktikum

"Based on the protein analysis, we are certain that we are dealing with male individuals," writes the team headed by Federico Lugli in the scientific reports magazine. More than 20 scientists participated in the project.

But the researchers can not say much more. The sexual orientation of the dead remains as in the dark as the answer to the question of whether the two were related to each other. So they could have been friends, brothers or comrade-in-arms who died in battle, the researchers write. For the latter, more finds from the cemetery would speak. Some of the dead show signs of violence - possibly an indication of a war cemetery. "The discovery of two men buried hand in hand could completely change our understanding of late antiquity rituals," the study said.

Ten years ago, the archaeologists discovered that the two must have lived rather poorly during the excavation. Her grave showed no graces that suggested a high status. Possibly they were farmers from the region, suspected the excavation leader.

Findings of dead people who have been buried as a couple have been made by archaeologists more often. A case is known from the Italian province of Mantua. There, researchers discovered two 5,000-6,000-year-old Neolithic tombs lying opposite each other in a hug. Similar funerals are known from Turkey and Greece. But all these finds were man and woman.

The pair of Modena is unique.