He was buried face down in the middle of an isolated field and with large nails in his neck, shoulders and between his feet. Someone went to a lot of trouble to immobilize him when he died. At first glance, he didn't look like an elite Roman soldier. But the trousseau that accompanied him betrayed his high status. The spiked boots, a silver pin, the “crossbow” brooch and the remains of an iron sword left no room for doubt. The individual was part of the military elite of Wales between the 3rd and 4th centuries AD.
Researchers from the Red River Archeology Group have discovered his burial site, and four others, south of the Roman villa at Whitton Lodge, a site first excavated by Cardiff University between 1965 and 1970. The area is now being redeveloped. within a plan to expand road connections that includes Five Mile Lane, a road link on the A4226 from Weycock's Cross to Sycamore Cross, in the Vale of Glamorgan.
The soldier was between the ages of 21 and 25 when he died. And isotopic analysis of his skeleton has shown that the man was not a local and probably came to serve as a military officer or administrator. He was buried just 2.5 meters from a woman between the ages of 26 and 35 who gave very similar radiocarbon dates (late 3rd to early 5th century), which could suggest a relationship between the two.
At the time of his death, the man was suffering from mastoiditis, a severe and debilitating infection of the mastoid bone behind the ear. The presence of a crossbow brooch made of silver, named for its distinctive shape, suggests that the man was part of the late Roman military (or administrative) elite, who wore such brooches to indicate high rank.
Crossbow brooches are a reasonably common type of Roman bow brooch dating to the late 3rd and 4th century AD. Most examples are of copper alloy, although examples of silver and even gold are known. “To the best of my knowledge, this is the earliest example of a Roman silver crossbow clasp to be found in Wales,” said Evan Chapman, Senior Curator at the Museum of Wales.
Crossbow clasps appear to have been associated with the Late Roman army and civil service. Possibly originally a badge of office, although it has been suggested that elements of military dress, including these brooches, were adopted by the elite.
The sword is an example of the longer type used by the Roman army at that time. Their presence would support the military connection, the archaeologists say in a statement. “The burial of a young man dressed in military gear was an unexpected discovery,” explains Rachel Morgan, an archaeologist with the Red River Archeology Group.
“The silver clasp with which the individual was buried indicates their important status within the military or in society at large. He died sometime between the middle of the third century and the end of the fourth century, when this style of brooch had become a symbol of imperial administrators, so it is unlikely that he was an ordinary soldier and evidently had some wealth." Add.
Next to the burial of the soldier and the woman, another of the recently excavated graves showed the remains of an individual who had been decapitated, with the skull placed between his feet. And this is not the only time it has happened. In 2021, for example, a Roman burial ground was discovered at Knobb's Farm, north of Cambridge, where 13 people were found buried face down and another 17 beheaded (out of a total of 52).
Although no explanation for these types of burials has been discovered so far, archaeologists interpret that, whether they were intended for low-status individuals, criminals, or those whose communities wanted to ensure "stay dead," upside-down graves were never found. they see it as a positive way to dispose of the deceased.
The Vale of Glamorgan not only preserves remains from Roman times. Remains of a Neolithic and Bronze Age ceremonial and funerary landscape, evidence of Iron Age agriculture and even a medieval cemetery that reused another from the Bronze Age have also been found in this southern area of Wales.
