Grain pits and grave from the Bronze Age

Another important discovery was announced by archaeologists in Brno. In the center of the city they found four pits for storing seeds and a grave with the remains of a man who lived in the Bronze Age. He was buried with several ceramic vessels.

Archaeologists have succeeded in mapping the settlement of the Unetic culture, which occurred in our territory in the years 2300 to 1700 BC. This means at the end of the Eneolithic and in the Early Bronze Age. Directly in Brno's Zábrdovice, the settlement from the mentioned period is already known to archaeologists. Thanks to research under the Children's Hospital and in Spolková, Příkop, Bratislavská and Cejla streets.

New discoveries are reported by archaeologists from Hvězdová Street, which is located nearby. They found pits used in the past to store seeds. These were underground granaries, the throat of which was thoroughly secured to prevent moisture and oxygen from entering. What remained inside was gradually converted to carbon dioxide, creating a hermetically sealed atmosphere. The seed lasted for decades in such conditions.

Archaeologists also discovered the tomb. At the beginning of the research, they were not at all sure that they had just hit a grave pit. Its outlines were not visible. It merged with one of the four grain supply pits found. "The presence of a human skeleton was a surprise to us. Revealed only when the spade relentlessly pierced the skull and crushed the fragile shell of the human mind into dozens of pieces. Determining the original features of the buried is made significantly more difficult by this rough procedure, "said archaeologist Michaela Přibylová from the organization Archaia Brno.

However, the skull eventually managed to return to its almost original form, thanks to an experienced anthropologist. In addition, she was able to read information about the deceased from the inscriptions written in the bones. He was a man who lived to be 45 to 60 years old. He was about 174 centimeters tall. Experts also looked for injuries to the skeleton. However, all unhealed wounds were located on the skull and were caused during the aforementioned excavation.

"The skeleton was not affected by anomalies caused by poor nutrition in childhood, such as rickets, enamel hypoplasia and the like. Perhaps only the proximal parts of his tibia show that he may have had his knees slightly turned inwards, "Přibylová explained.

The man also had very worn teeth. The condition corresponds to one of the last stages described in the table, which anthropologists use to determine age-related seizures. He probably ate a lot of starch and other sugars mixed with sand. This gritted his teeth intensely. The presence of mineral flavorings is not at all unusual at the time when the man lived, given the then technology of grinding grains. The man also apparently had a hot plate. This is evidenced by the so-called Schmorl knots on the three vertebrae. Due to the age of the deceased, this is a common condition. Otherwise, the carcass does not show more wear.

Robbers or rodents probably got into the tomb because the dead man's chest was manipulated. However, a ceramic vessel remained in the dead man's lap and was buried with him. It has opposite ears and they burned it badly. "On the right forearm of the dead lay a chipped industry, unspecified. At the deceased's feet was a ceramic bowl with an animal shovel, a ceramic mug with an ear, in which a ceramic cup with a polished surface was inserted, and a bone awl. Ceramics dates the entire burial to the Unetic culture, "said the archaeologist.

Sources: www.archaiabrno.org, www.uapp.cz