The Romanian Romeo and Juliet: Mystery of the young couple buried holding hands in courtyard of monastery
- Double burials were extremely rare in the Middle Ages
- The male had a broken hip, but the female cause of death is unclear
- Body of child also found in the grave – not clear if it was related
Archaeologists excavating the inner courtyard of a former Dominican monastery may have discovered a Romanian Romeo and Juliet after unearthing the bodies of a young couple who were buried holding hands.
Experts from the Cluj-Napoca Institute of Archaeology and History of Art are working on what they believe is the former cemetery of the monastery have already uncovered several bodies
But discovering the couple holding hands was a surprise as double burials were extremely rare in that period.
Forever holding hands: Archaeologists excavating the courtyard of a former Dominican monastery in Cluj-Napoca have been left baffled after discovering the bodies of a young couple who were buried holding hands
Double: Experts from the Cluj-Napoca Institute of Archaeology and History of Art were baffled when they came across the double grave dating back to the Middle Ages
Main researcher Adrian Rusu said: ‘It is a mystery – and rare for such burials at that time.
‘We can see that the man had suffered a severe injury that left him with a broken hip from which he probably died. We believe the injury was caused after he was hit by something very blunt and hard.’
Because of the fact that the young woman obviously died at the same time and was presumably healthy we are speculating that she possibly died of a broken heart at the loss of her partner.
‘Because of the fact that the young woman obviously died at the same time and was presumably healthy we are speculating that she possibly died of a broken heart at the loss of her partner,’ said the experts
Mr Rusu explained that becuase suicide was regarded as a sin in the Medieval Ages it is unlikely she killed herself – and if she had they would not have been buried together like the were in a holy place.
‘They were obviously buried together as a tribute to the love they had for each other,’ he said.
He estimated that the two bodies were buried somewhere between 1450-1550.
The body of a child was also found in the grave in Cluj-Napoca although this may not have been linked to the pair.
The lower leg bones of a fourth skeleton were also found in the burial plot.
