1 - The Unterhaching Grave Finds: Richly Dressed Burials from Sixth-Century Bavaria

Summary

The burial ground of Unterhaching provides exceptional evidence of elite dress in the early sixth century. The cemetery, situated in the southern part of the county of Munich, Germany, in a geological region known as the Munich Gravel Plain, was excavated Dec. 8–13, 2004. The finds were subsequently conserved and scientifically examined by the Bavarian State Archaeological Collection, Munich, and the Bavarian State Department of Monuments and Sites. The most important results already have been presented to the general public in an exhibition and in an associated popular publication. At the time of writing, the scientific research is almost finished and is scheduled to be published in 2012.

GRAVE GOODS AND BURIAL CUSTOMS

The ten burials, consisting of three men, six women, and a young girl, belong to the same archaeological period. According to various dating systems, this can be termed stage 2 following Kurt Böhner, AM I following Hermann Ament, layer 1 following Rainer Christlein, or SD phase 3/4 according to Ursula Koch. Although the absolute dates suggest the time span between AD 480 and 520–30, the radiocarbon dates of the skeletons mostly fall in the early sixth century with a statistical confidence level of over 90 percent. They did not die contemporaneously during warlike events or a plague; based on the study of the human remains, the cause of death was very likely individual to each case.