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The graves of three elite warriors, dating to the period of the Hungarian Conquest (AD 920s-930s), have been discovered near the village of Akasztó in southern Hungary.
One of these burials, belonging to a 17- or 18-year-old warrior, is among the richest ever found in the region. The young man was buried with an array of luxurious grave goods including a silver-gilded belt, a gold ring with blue glass stones, silver bracelets and anklets, and small gold plates that may have been part of clothing or a death shroud. He was also wearing a silver plate sabretache (pictured), part of a belt pouch carried by warriors; the precious metal is indicative of his high status. As is typical of the warrior elite from this period, he was interred with the remains of his horse, complete with silver-gilded harness fittings.
The other burials belong to a 15- to 16-year-old male and a man aged 30 35. These graves were not as lavishly furnished, but still contained weaponry, ornamental horse paraphernalia, and silver jewellery.
Additionally, archaeologists recovered a total of 81 Italian silver coins across the three graves. These date to the reign of Berengar (d. AD 924), a great-grandson of Charlemagne who ruled parts of northern Italy. In this period, warriors from the Kingdom of Hungary were hired as mercenaries to fight in wars in northern Italy. It is possible that this was the case with these three men, and that the coins represent their pay for such services.
The causes of the men’s deaths are currently uncertain, but genetic analysis has revealed that the second and third burial were probably either father and son, or brothers, while the first is also related to them more distantly through paternal lines. It has been suggested that the younger boy and the older man may have been part of the entourage of the richly buried teenage warrior.
Further analysis is ongoing, but it is hoped that it will be able to tell us more about the lives, and deaths, of these men.
Text: Amy Brunskill / Image: László György
