Couple that was excavated after 1500 years hand in hand, consists of two men

[Palinurus]

Source (Dutch only): Stel dat na 1500 jaar hand in hand werd opgegraven, bestaat uit twee mannen

Couple that was excavated after 1500 years hand in hand, consists of two men

September 12, 2019 21 minutes ago Restated: 10 minutes ago

The two skeletons were discovered in 2011 Image © University of Bologna


Eight years ago, archaeologists came across a romantic find deep underground in the Italian town of Modena. They found two skeletons that had been holding hands for 1500 years. Many people assumed that it was a man and a woman, but new research tells a completely different story.

Researchers at the University of Bologna have discovered that they are two men. The research was published yesterday in the scientific journal Scientific Reports.

New research

In 2009, when the skeletons were [first] found, the researchers were not yet able to determine what the gender was. However, as a new research technique is available in which tooth enamel is analyzed, there is now more clarity.

The researchers now claim that these are two adult men who were deliberately buried hand in hand. This conclusion makes the grave unique, says researcher Federico Lugli to the Italian news website Rai [in Italian]. "In the past, several graves were found with people lying hand in hand, but in all cases it was a man and a woman."

Image © University of Bologna

The question remains what the relationship was between the two men. Lugli: "For the time being, it remains a mystery what the link was between them. We are convinced that the two men had a relationship with each other, but what kind of relationship exactly, that is the question."

Homosexual?

The researchers do not assume that the two men were homosexual. "That's actually unlikely for late antiquity," says Fugli. The two men are the same age. They can be family members, like brothers or cousins. "Or soldiers who died together in battle."

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator

I wasn't able to find an earlier report on SOTT about this particular find but found two others in stead:
Skeleton couple still holding hands after 700 years -- Sott.net
Skeletons holding hands unearthed at 3,500-year-old Siberian burial site -- Sott.net

 

[Risen]

Sorry I don’t know why anyone would assume they were “lovebirds “ they could easily have been friends or brothers who died at the same time. Before our common era of homophobia, people of the same sex were much more physically affectionate and still are in less homophobic cultures.