A thousand-year-old grave in Ukraine, men with bracelets around their necks and buckets on their feet

A 1,000-year-old cemetery has been discovered in Ukraine, where the structures have bracelets around their necks and buckets on their feet.

Axes, swords, spears, jewelry and chicken bones were also found near the capital, Kiev, in what is believed to be a pagan mass grave.

According to the new research, archaeologists have found a stone altar as well as remains such as bracelets, pearls and eggshells.

In one image, a female skeleton can be seen with bracelets around her neck and wrists. Researchers say it may have been used to distinguish the sex of the dead.

When the dead were buried in this cemetery, people in Ukraine were converting to Christianity. This included the great Volodymyr, who renounced his beliefs and traditions and was baptized around 987.

Researchers Vysevolud Ivakin and Vyacheslav Baranov, who led the project, say: ‘Weapons found in Austria are more common in Kyivan Rus and northeastern Europe.

“Other objects, such as two Ostreo grave buckets for men, are also found in Pomeranian and Masovian cemeteries of military elites in Prussia in the 11th century.”

Researchers excavated the cemetery between 2017 and 2022. Archaeologists told ScienceLive that the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine has halted many excavations in Ukraine, including this one.

Earlier, archaeologists in Greece had unearthed a 2,000-year-old temple full of gold and jewels. After excavations in the Greek island of Evia, this place was discovered full of gold, silver and amber.

This 100 feet tall building from the 7th century BC was discovered in 2023 by a team of 50 researchers.

Excavations of the ancient temple have also yielded Corinthian alabaster, Attic vases, locally made ritual jugs and jewelry made from precious materials such as gold, silver and coral, according to Greece’s Ministry of Culture.

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