On Monday, archaeologists from the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (Inrap) in France revealed a discovery on the Île de Ré, a French Atlantic coastal island. As journalists gathered at the Arc'Antique laboratory in Nantes, France, Annie Bolle, the scientific manager of the excavation site, cautiously presented findings that could shed new light on medieval history. "The investigation is just beginning and raises more questions than answers at this time," Bolle told the local media, according to BFMTV.
The excavation, which commenced last December, revealed approximately 50 graves on a 900-square-meter plot in La Flotte on the Île de Ré. Among these were five "atypical" tombs that have attracted the attention of archaeologists due to their unusual orientation and the positioning of the skeletons. The human skeletons exhumed were sent to the analysis laboratory in Nantes for further study, as reported by BFMTV.
According to Le Point, the tombs were carbon-14 dated to between 772 and 972 CE, placing them in the Carolingian era. These graves are distinguished by characteristics, including the position of the bodies, their orientation, and the presence of unusual objects near the remains.
The recovered artifacts include adornments, clothing, and personal items, leading the archaeologists to qualify these burials as "dressed." Among the findings are necklaces of beads made of amber, glass, bone, and copper alloy found in two burials. "What is striking are mainly the jewelry and small tools discovered, including copper belt buckles, metal clasps, and hair combs," said Bolle, according to Le Point. "These discoveries are unique in France."
Among the pieces are two combs made of bone or deer antler, one of which has a geometric decoration that evokes parallels with objects identified in the Frisian region of the Netherlands. Metal objects were found alongside the bodies, including a pivoting knife, a similar example of which was found in the southeast of England. Also found was a belt made of copper alloy, perhaps silver-plated, featuring decoration that evokes the Anglo-Saxon world, as reported by Le Point.
"The first comparisons suggest Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, but also Frisian and Danish peoples," stated Bolle, according to BFMTV. "These unexpected medieval tombs testify to vast networks of exchanges between the Nordic world and the Atlantic coast," noted Inrap, the archaeological institute.
There are two hypotheses regarding the origin of the graves: either Vikings buried among the local population, or locals of high status displaying a particular status even in death. "Writings from Charlemagne already mentioned Viking raids in his empire, and yet, even in Normandy, few traces have been found," explained historian and Scandinavian world specialist Lucie Malbos to Sud Ouest, according to BFMTV.
"This discovery is totally surprising in this region," said Malbos, as reported by BFMTV. She added, "The analyses now launched should help solve this historical enigma." The Île de Ré fits into a historical context marked by Viking raids around the year 1000.
The site of La Flotte has probably served as a landing port since antiquity, and the burial site is associated with a chapel that could be that of the Sainte-Eulalie priory, mentioned for the first time in 1156 before being destroyed four centuries later.
As reported by Le Monde, the excavations also uncovered other, older graves containing around 15 adults and eight children located outside of the religious site.
Three individuals in the atypical graves are in uncommon positions: one is lying on the left side with the lower limbs bent, another is lying on the stomach, and the third is on the back but with the limbs folded and elevated. For the last two individuals, it remains to be confirmed that these positions are not related to the collapse of the tomb's architecture.
More analyses, including genomic and isotopic studies, will be conducted soon to determine the geographical origin and possible family links between these individuals.
The article was written with the assistance of a news analysis system.