Mass burial of Roman soldiers

Construction workers renovating a Vienna football field found a grim piece of history: a mass grave containing the skeletal remains of what are believed to be warriors from a 1st-century Roman battle. The site yielded evidence of a brutal battle, likely involving Germanic tribes. Located in the Simmering district of Vienna, the mass grave holds the intertwined remains of at least 129 individuals. Finding the dead is unique for Roman history as soldiers in the Roman Empire were typically cremated until the 3rd century.

Every skeleton examined showed signs of injury — typically to the head, torso and pelvis. This rules out execution. Victims were all male. Most were aged 20 to 30 years old and were in good health. Bones dated to between 80 and 130 A.D. That was consistant with history of relics found in the grave – armor, helmet cheek protectors, and the nails used in distinctive Roman military footwear known as caligae. A rusty dagger of a type in use specifically between the middle of the 1st century and the start of the second was found. The most likely theory is that the battle was connected to the Danube campaigns of Emperor Domitian, from 86 to 96 A.D. In the winter of 85/86 AD after 116 years of peace along the Roman frontier, King Duras swarmed over the frozen Danube and pillaged Moesia. The Romans were caught by surprise and most forces, including the Legio V Alaudae, were annihilated.

Domitian (A.D. 81-96), Gold Aureus. Mint of Rome, struck A.D. 92-4. Domitian in triumphal quadriga. 7.55g. An excellent example. $39k USD