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| Figure 1: Artist rendering of the Lovers of Valdaro (Source: CraigCreative) |
You may have seen the image in Figure 1 as it is a popular
one in certain social circles: two skeletons embracing each other, with one
holding the other’s face. This imagery
is actually based on a real-life pair of skeletons, who have since been dubbed the
“Lovers of Valdaro” (Figure 2). Today’s
blog post will address who the “Lovers of Valdaro” are and what is currently
known of them.
The “Lovers of Valdaro” refers to a pair of skeletons found “embracing”
each other. They received their name
because of their positions and the location of their burial (in the village of
Valdaro in Italy). The pair was uncovered
by an archaeological team led by Elena Maria Menotti in 2007. The two skeletons are indeed that of a man
(aged 18 to 22) and a woman (aged 16-18) who died approximately 5500 years ago during
the Neolithic Period/Bronze Age. This
burial is unique in several ways, the first being that double burials are rare
for the period, as well as the unique placement of the bodies. It is unknown if the pair were indeed lovers
or even if they knew each other during their short lives. It is also unknown what led to their
death. While arrow points have been discovered
around the bodies they do not appear to be the cause of deaths for either
individual but instead are most likely burial goods placed with the deceased
after their death. At the present time
the causes of death for either individual remains unknown. It is also hypothesized that these two
individuals may not have been buried in the placement that they were ultimately
discovered, but instead they were buried on top of each other in a squat
position. As their bodies decomposed
their skeletons fell into each and the “loving embrace” that has characterized
them since.
Despite X-rays, DNA samples, and 3D scans purportedly being
taken on these two individuals prior to their permanent display in the Archaeological
Museum of Mantua no results of these analyses have been published to date. As the archaeological team elected to keep
the pair in situ other analyses are limited or impossible at this time. While very little is known about these individuals
they have managed to capture the attention of people from around the world, and
they remain a popular attraction for tourists visiting Italy.
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| Figure 2: Photograph of the Lovers of Valdaro (Source: Amanti di Valdaro) |
References
Atlas Obscura. (n.d.). Lovers of Valdaro.
Retrieved from Atlas Obscura:
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/lovers-of-valdaro
Karasavvas, T. (2017, January 21). Neolithic Romeo
and Juliet? The Star-Crossed Lovers of Valdaro. Retrieved from Ancient
Origins:
https://www.ancient-origins.net/history/neolithic-romeo-and-juliet-star-crossed-lovers-valdaro-007413
Polo museale della Lombardia. (2019). Archaeology
in the Mantua area: The “Lovers of Valdaro”. Retrieved from Polo museale
della Lombardia:
https://musei.lombardia.beniculturali.it/en/magazine/archaeology-in-the-mantua-area-the-lovers-of-valdaro/
Urbanus, J. (2008, January/February). Eternal
Embrace. Retrieved from Archaeology Magazine:
https://archive.archaeology.org/0801/abstracts/valdaro.html
6 comments:
First off the first picture is heart wrenching and like where they were sleeping did they know it was their final breath and just lay there together. Did they know there was no way out? Did they die instantly there’s so many questions that I feel like I need answers to. Like was it a Romeo and Juliet type of thing and they did it to themselves I feel like I’m being lied to and away by not having the answer. Continuing always had this question if bones don’t decompose properly how do we know how long ago it was. When I was younger I thought bones were just different then but now growing up and actually looking at the picture they look the same as if someone from yesterday or today like I understand that like the deeper you go the order it’s going to be but as you said in class previously if something happens today people from the future are going to be confused because we have things from before like pennies with different dates on it
Damia
My question for this article is how did the two individuals go from laying on top of each other just to fall into an embrace with one of their hands on the others face? Like how can you tell that they weren't already like this before? Also if the two individuals didn't know each other then why were they burred together?
-Jada Johnson
Great questions, Jada. The position of the bodies could suggest that over time and as the soil moved (from natural processes such as freezing and thawing or earthquake activity) the bodies changed position. As I was not involved in this study and have not read the original papers on this discovery I cannot provide more information as to how and why the archaeologists reached this conclusion. As for why would two people who are not lovers be placed like this it could be any number of reasons. As discussed in class, ultimately burials reflect the views of the dead by the living, so their burial placement was significant to the living in some way, which we may never know.
Wow, this blog is very heartwarming but also bittersweet. I have a lot of questions but first I must say I truly believe the bodies found are truly lovers and somehow found peace in knowing they would be together eternally.The one question that lingers with me is what is the backstory of the supposed lovers? I feel empty but also informed.
I really liked this blog. It taught me that The “Lovers of Valdaro” refers to a pair of skeletons found “embracing” each other. They received their name because of their positions and the location of their burial (in the village of Valdaro in Italy).-Josh w
I was hoping to see the remains of the deceased to be buried together in a warm embrace rather than their remains being moved from being buried on top of one another to embracing. Who knows maybe they were star-crossed lovers it is hard to tell what the circumstances could have been in the past. Renn Bullard
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