Medieval Cemetery Points to Mysterious, Wealthy Group

A medieval cemetery unearthed a stone's throw from airport runways in Cardiff, Wales, points to a mysterious, high-status community that may have obtained items from another continent an estimated 1,500 years ago. Artifacts including a tiny vessel of fine glass thought to have been imported from France's Bordeaux region and pottery possibly originating in North Africa have emerged from 18 of an estimated 70 graves at the site on the grounds of Fonmon Castle, as well as the surrounding area, the BBC reports. The finds suggest the community had "access to very high-quality imported goods that you can only get through trading or exchange networks, with people with a lot of wealth," says Tudur Davies, a specialist in early medieval archaeology at the University of Cardiff.

The skeletons found in the graves, carved into bedrock, are interesting, too. They're in a variety of positions: on their backs, on their sides, and crouching with knees against the chest. This might indicate that burial practices changed over time or that burial positions were used to differentiate certain individuals, though archaeologists aren't sure. The whole site has them "scratching their heads," as the BBC puts it. University of Reading osteoarchaeologist Summer Courts points to one skull with teeth "very worn in a kind of a funny way that might indicate the use of teeth as tools," possibly "for textile work, leather work, or basketry." It appears as though the individual was "pulling something through their front teeth," she says.

Archaeologists, who've been working at the site for two summers, intend to undertake more precise dating and DNA analysis. For now, it appears the site marks "a place where communities are coming together," team leader Dr. Andy Seaman of the University of Cardiff tells the BBC. "They are burying their dead, but they're also undertaking other forms of activity and social practice, including eating and drinking and feasting," as evidenced by dishes, cups, and fragments of burnt animal bones. As there's no sign of people having lived at the site, it's suspected of being used for rituals, per the Daily Express. Among the artifacts is a small, carved peg of bone, possibly used as a marker in a game, per Metro. It could be "something like we use in a cribbage board," per the BBC. (More discoveries stories.)