Skeletal remains of Roman aristocrat discovered in hidden lead coffin

古羅馬貴族骨骸在隱蔽鉛棺中被發(fā)現(xiàn)

By?Lianne Kolirin, CNN

Published 12:50 PM EDT, Mon March 13, 2023

CNN?—?The remains of a?Roman?aristocrat have been unearthed by?archaeologists?in northern England.

考古學家最近在英格蘭北部挖掘出一具古羅馬貴族遺骸。

The skeleton of the unidentified woman, believed to be more than 1,000 years old, was found in a lead coffin in a hidden cemetery in the city of Leeds last year.

這具具信具有1000年歷史的身份未知女性骨骸，是去年在利茲一個隱蔽起來的墓地鉛棺中被發(fā)現(xiàn)的。

The remains of 62 people were dug up at the previously unknown archaeological site near Garforth. Men, women and 23 children were buried at the site uncovered by a team of archaeologists.

此前一隊考古學家曾在加爾福茲附近的不知名考古現(xiàn)場挖掘出包含被埋葬的男性、女性及23名兒童在內(nèi)的62名人員殘骸。

The dead are thought to include people from both the late Roman and early Saxon era, as burial customs of both eras were found in the graves, according to a?press release?published by Leeds City Council Monday.

根據(jù)利茲市議會周一發(fā)布的新聞稿，由于從墓穴中發(fā)現(xiàn)了羅馬時代晚期及撒克遜時代早期的墓葬風俗，故認為死者包含了上述兩個時期的人類。

David Hunter, principle archaeologist with West Yorkshire Joint Services, told CNN Monday that the discovery emerged after a commercial developer submitted an application for planning permission to the council.

西約克郡聯(lián)合部隊首席考古學家David Hunter，周一告知CNN，他們是在一名商業(yè)地產(chǎn)開發(fā)商向市議會提交規(guī)劃許可申請后進行的此次發(fā)掘。

An archaeological survey of the site – the exact location of which hasn’t been released – led to the remains being found last spring.

對這個尚未公開確切地點的考古踏勘指向了去年春季發(fā)現(xiàn)的人類骸骨。

“We certainly got more than we bargained for,” Hunter told CNN. He said his team had reason to believe that the site might be of archaeological interest, as they’d found Roman and Anglo-Saxon structures nearby on previous digs. “But we didn’t expect to find a cemetery of 62 at this location,” he added.

Hunter告訴CNN，我們從中取得了比想象多的多的信息。他說介于他們在上一次發(fā)掘過程中在周邊發(fā)現(xiàn)了古羅馬及安格魯-撒克遜時期建造物，他的團隊有理由相信這個遺址會引起考古界的興趣。

Evidence of burial practices found on the site could indicate early Christian beliefs, along with Saxon burial, the team said. They also found personal possessions such as knives and pottery.

考古團隊說到，在挖掘現(xiàn)場發(fā)現(xiàn)的殯葬風俗證據(jù)能夠表示出早期基督教信仰及撒克遜墓葬風俗。他們還發(fā)現(xiàn)如刀具、陶器等個人物品。

Describing the lead coffin as “very rare,” Hunter said: “The lead sheeting is the lining of a larger wooden coffin so it’s a very high status Roman body.”

Hunter形容這座鉛棺非常稀有，他說這個鉛棺是一座更大的木制棺材的內(nèi)襯，因此這具古羅馬遺體享有非常高的地位。

The coffin also contained pieces of jewelery which reinforced the team’s suspicions about the person buried inside.

這具棺材中還有一些珠寶，這增強了團隊對里面埋葬之人身份的猜測。

Archaeologists hope that the 1,600-year-old cemetery could help?them understand the important and largely undocumented transition between the fall of the Roman Empire in around 400 and the establishment of the later Anglo-Saxon kingdoms.

考古學家希望這座具有1600年歷史的墓穴能夠幫助他們了解公園400年古羅馬帝國覆滅至隨后盎格魯-撒克遜王朝建立期間尚未被記錄的重大變化。

After the Romans left Britain, West Yorkshire lay in the Kingdom of Elmet, which was located between the Wharfe and Don Valleys, the Vale of York and the Pennines, according to the press release.

根據(jù)快報，古羅馬人離開不列顛后，西約克郡屬于坐落在沃夫、頓谷、約克谷及奔寧山脈之間的埃米特王國。

Even after the Romans departed, many areas, including Elmet, continued to display elements of Roman culture – alongside that of the Anglo Saxons. That lasted for around 200 years.

即便在古羅馬帝國分裂后，包括埃米特等多個地區(qū)在體現(xiàn)出盎格魯撒克遜文化元素的同時仍能顯露出古羅馬文化元素。這一現(xiàn)象持續(xù)了約200年。

Describing the dig as “extraordinary,” Hunter said in the release: “This has the potential to be a find of massive significance for what we understand about the development of ancient Britain and Yorkshire.

Hunter形容此次發(fā)掘是驚人的，他在快報中說到：“這次發(fā)掘很可能對我們認知古代不列顛及約克郡發(fā)展情況產(chǎn)生大量且重要的意義。

“The presence of two communities using the same burial site is highly unusual and whether their use of this graveyard overlapped or not will determine just how significant the find is.”

這次對兩種群體共用同一處墓穴的發(fā)現(xiàn)非同尋常，無論他們是否是先后使用使用此墓穴都能確定此次發(fā)現(xiàn)的重要程度。

The remains will undergo testing and analysis, including carbon dating, which the team hope will help establish precise time frames, as well as details of individuals’ diets and their ancestry.

這些遺體將會繼續(xù)進行包括如碳測序等檢查和分析研究。團隊希望這能夠幫助其建立準確的時間表，并查明其飲食及祖先。

Excavation of the site was partly prompted by the fact that previous digs in the nearby area had unearthed late Roman stone buildings and a small number of Anglo-Saxon style structures. The findings have only just been made public as the site had to be kept secure so that initial tests could be carried out.

促成此次挖掘的原因一部分是前段時間在附近的考古挖掘中出土了一些古羅馬后期石砌建筑及盎格魯-撒克遜樣式的結(jié)構(gòu)。為確保遺跡安全以便進行初步檢測，上次發(fā)現(xiàn)僅是進行了公布。

Kylie Buxton, on-site supervisor, said in the release: “It is every archaeologist’s dream to work on a ‘once in a lifetime’ site, and supervising these excavations is definitely a career-high for me.”

挖掘現(xiàn)場主管Kylie Buxton在簡報中說到：“在在一生僅一次的古跡中工作是每一位考古學家的夢想，毫無疑問，主導這類挖掘使我的職業(yè)生涯達到了新的高度?！?/span>

Once analysis of the find is complete – a process which could take a year or two, according to Hunter – the lead coffin is expected to go on display at Leeds City Museum.

根據(jù)Hunter的說法，一旦對本次發(fā)掘的分析研究結(jié)束-相關過程可能會持續(xù)一至兩年，這座鉛棺將會運至利茲城市博物館展出。