Archaeologists from the Szent István Király Museum uncovered the grave of a high-ranking Avar warrior dating to 670–690 CE near the border of Aba and Székesfehérvár, Focus Online reported.
Rescue excavations revealed a single tomb containing a sabre, a long knife, gilded braid rings, earrings set with glass beads, and silver and gilded ornaments—grave goods that marked the deceased as a member of the Early Medieval elite.
The sabre had become so brittle that volunteers in the museum’s Community Archaeology Program built a custom wooden crate and holder to remove it without damage. “The weapon, after so many centuries spent in the ground, was extremely fragile,” said representatives of the Szent István Király Museum, according to Focus Online. Conservators then transported the blade and surrounding soil to the laboratory for micro-excavation and conservation.
Although looters had destroyed the skull and chest, archaeologists recovered the arm bones and lower body in anatomical position, allowing future anthropological and genetic study.
The site lay within the Middle Avar period Khaganate, a nomadic empire that once dominated the Pannonian Basin and much of Central and Eastern Europe. Genetic research has shown that the Avar elite descended from Inner Asian groups with East Asian and Scytho-Iranian components, while ruling over an ethnically diverse population.
The preparation of this article relied on a news-analysis system.