🛡️ Roman soldiers in a well at Mursa?

Archaeologists found seven adult men stacked in a reused well at Roman Mursa (Osijek, Croatia). Radiocarbon dates place the burial in the mid-3rd century CE, during the Crisis of the Third Century. The bones show violent injuries consistent with battle, and isotopes point to a grain-heavy diet with limited meat, which fits army rations.

Ancient DNA shows mixed, non-local ancestries, not continuous with the earlier local Iron Age group, matching the makeup of imperial units. Together, the evidence points to victims of a military event, most likely tied to the 260 CE battle of Mursa.

Takeaway: This mass grave likely holds Roman soldiers from a single violent episode in the mid-3rd century, with DNA revealing a diverse army drawn from across the empire.

Source: Novak et al., 2025. Multidisciplinary study of human remains from the 3rd century mass grave in the Roman city of Mursa, Croatia.