Archaeologists uncover elite Iron Age woman’s burial

Archaeologists working near Høm, in Denmark’s Ringsted Municipality, have uncovered the grave of a wealthy woman who was buried almost 1,800 years ago.

The Iron Age burial was found during a routine investigation of a field, where the team had not expected to uncover anything quite so significant.

Among the objects recovered were an ornate chest buckle decorated with pearls, a rare tutulus fibula – a type of brooch commonly worn as part of Iron Age dress – fragments of two clay vessels and the remains of what may have been a wooden bench.

The items buried with the woman suggest someone of considerable status, although specialists say further analysis is needed before they can say more about her place in society.

Much of the attention is now centred on the chest buckle and its pearls. The artefacts are being examined using X-ray imaging, which will allow experts to look beneath the corrosion without damaging the objects themselves.

The scans should reveal how many beads survive, how well the artefacts have been preserved, and whether anything else remains hidden inside.

“We are anxiously awaiting the X-ray examinations,” the excavation team said. “They will tell us how many glass beads are still present, how well the objects have been preserved and whether additional items are hidden within the find.”

The burial was only one part of a much larger picture emerging from the site.

Elsewhere, archaeologists identified three possible grain-drying pits, although their age remains uncertain. They may date to the Iron Age, but some could be much later.

The excavation also uncovered cooking pits, fire pits, wells and several features thought to be retting pits used in linen production. Retting involved soaking flax to separate the fibres needed for spinning and weaving.

Traces of houses were found as well, showing that people lived and worked in the area over a long period.

Taken together, the remains point to a landscape that was used for farming, textile production and everyday life for generations.

For now, the woman’s grave remains the most remarkable find from the excavation. The results of the X-ray scans could reveal more about her status and the objects buried alongside her.