Sealed for 1,700 Years — Intact Roman Sarcophagus and Treasure Discovered Beneath Budapest

Archaeologists in Budapest have opened a limestone sarcophagus that appears to have been hermetically sealed for about 1,700 years, revealing a rare and remarkably intact Roman burial beneath the streets of Óbuda — the northern district that once formed part of the Roman town of Aquincum.

What was found

When conservators from the Budapest History Museum carefully levered off the heavy stone lid, which had been sealed with metal clamps and molten lead, they found a complete human skeleton accompanied by a rich assemblage of grave goods. Objects recovered include two perfectly preserved glass vessels, bronze figurines, a bone hairpin, traces of amber jewellery and gold-threaded textile, and a hoard of 140 coins. The size of the skeleton and the accompanying items indicate the burial was likely that of a young woman.

Context and significance

The coffin had been placed among the ruins of abandoned houses in a quarter of Aquincum that residents vacated in the 3rd century and which later became a burial area. Nearby the team also uncovered part of a Roman aqueduct and eight simpler graves, but none matched the sealed sarcophagus in terms of wealth or preservation.

"The peculiarity of the finding is that it was a hermetically sealed sarcophagus. It was not disturbed previously, so it was intact,"

— Gabriella Fényes, lead archaeologist

During the Roman period much of modern-day Hungary was part of the province of Pannonia; the provincial frontier ran along the Danube's right bank, less than a mile (1.6 km) from the tomb. A legionary camp once guarded that border, and the newly uncovered structures are thought to belong to the civilian settlement that grew up around the military installation.

Next steps

Anthropologists will study the woman's remains to determine her age, health and geographic origin. Conservators also removed a layer of mud about four centimetres thick from inside the coffin; that material will be sifted carefully in case it contains small personal items such as earrings or other jewellery.

"These were items placed with the deceased by her relatives for her journey to the afterlife,"

— Gabriella Fényes

Gergely Kostyál, a Roman-period specialist and co-leader of the project, noted the rarity of finding an unused sarcophagus: by the fourth century it was common practice to reuse earlier coffins, so this example appears to have been made specifically for the person interred and suggests relatively high social status.

Beyond its archaeological value, the discovery resonated on a personal level for the excavation team. "I was very moved by the care and the expression of love that we were able to glimpse," Fényes said. "Even now, I shudder to think how painful it must have been for the people at that time to bury this young lady."