5 October 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Women buried with thick twisted bronze neck rings and buckets on their feet found in Ukraine

Archaeologists discovered the remains of men buried with weapons such as axes, spearheads, and swords, and women buried with thick twisted bronze neck rings in an 11th-century cemetery near the village of Ostriv, south of Kiev, Ukraine.

Researchers Vsevolod Ivakin and Vyacheslav Baranov presented their study of the remains at the Archaeological Institute of America, which was held Jan. 4-7 in Chicago, according to Live Science.

In 2017, the Ukrainian Institute of Archaeology conducted an expedition that discovered the Ostriv graveyard. Between 2017 and 2022, excavations uncovered 107 inhumation burials from the late 10th and 11th centuries. The graves’ uniqueness was quickly apparent. Unlike the unusual funerary practices of the Kyivan Rus during this period, the graves were facing south and west rather than north.

The deceased were laid in supine position (on their backs), with outstretched limbs. In most of the graves, there were remnants of wooden coffins. The remains of funerary food offerings (chicken bones and eggshells) were discovered in the graves and in wooden buckets at the feet of some of the deceased. Some people were buried with extremely valuable items, including slate spindle whorls, jewelry such as bronze neck rings and bracelets, pennanular brooches, cast bronze belt rings, cowrie shell bead necklaces, and weapons such as battle axes, knives, and spearheads.

The skeleton of a woman who was buried with elaborate neck rings as well as rings around her arms. Image credit: Vyacheslav Baranov
The skeleton of a woman who was buried with elaborate neck rings as well as rings around her arms. Image credit: Vyacheslav Baranov

Though the comparison was not exact, the orientation and funerary furnishings bore a strong resemblance to the practices of tribes in the Western Baltic. Most remarkably, none of the Ostriv graves were cremation burials; the Western Baltic peoples generally burned their dead. Furthermore, Baltic funeral customs do not generally involve buckets.



📣 Our WhatsApp channel is now LIVE! Stay up-to-date with the latest news and updates, just click here to follow us on WhatsApp and never miss a thing!!



 Archaeologists hypothesize that these key differences may be attributed to restrictions placed on traditional funerary practices by the Christian dukes of Kyiv, primarily Volodymyr the Great (r. 980-1015) and Yaroslav the Wise (r. 1019-1054), and by the process of Christianization of the Baltic settlers of the region during the 11th century. A stone altar found in the cemetery could have been used for Christian or pagan rituals, or a mixture of the two.

Research continued at the site until 2022 but the excavation has been paused due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Cover Photo: Vyacheslav Baranov

Related Articles

Archaeologists Unearth Rare Artifacts from the First Turkic Khaganate in the Altai Mountains

15 September 2025

15 September 2025

Archaeologists from Altai State University and their international colleagues have made a groundbreaking discovery in Russia’s Altai Republic, unearthing artifacts...

2,000-year-old stone faces and engravings emerge amid severe drought in Amazon

24 October 2023

24 October 2023

As a result of record-low water levels brought on by the region’s worst drought in over a century, faces carved...

Mystery of the World’s Oldest Map on a Nearly 3,000-year-old Babylonian Tablet Finally Solved

28 October 2024

28 October 2024

A recent British Museum video reveals that the “oldest map of the world in the world” on a clay tablet...

Archaeologists are deciphering Roman history along Dere Street, one of the oldest roadways in Britain

17 July 2021

17 July 2021

Final archaeological finds uncovered as part of a major road improvement in the north of England have shed new insight...

A Mysterious 1,800-year-old Roman Statue Unearthed During Car Park Construction Work in UK

13 March 2024

13 March 2024

A 1,800-year-old Roman marble statue of a woman’s head was discovered during construction in the parking lot of Burghley House...

7,000-Year-Old Human Footprints in Anatolia: Unearthed at Hatay’s Tell Kurdu Höyük

30 September 2025

30 September 2025

In a rare and captivating discovery, archaeologists have uncovered ancient human footprints dating back approximately 7,000 years at the site...

The 20-million-year-old fossil of a sea creature in the ancient city of Tyana may have been used as a means of payment

22 October 2021

22 October 2021

During the ongoing excavations in the ancient city of Tyana in the Kemerhisar district of Niğde, a 20-million-year-old fossil thought...

3,500-Year-Old Human-Bodied, Eagle-Headed Seal Discovered in Central Türkiye

9 September 2025

9 September 2025

Archaeological excavations at Karahöyük in central Türkiye have led to a remarkable discovery: a 3,500-year-old human-headed, eagle-bodied seal. According to...

In the 1,900-year-old underground temple of Mithras religion in Zerzevan Castle, an area where participants of secret rituals stayed was unearthed

23 July 2024

23 July 2024

Excavations at the  Zerzevan Castle in Diyarbakır province in the southeastern part of Türkiye have uncovered an area where participants...

The easternmost Roman aqueduct in Armenia was discovered

19 November 2021

19 November 2021

Archaeologists from the University of Münster and the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia have discovered remains...

Scientists discover 4 new Nazca Geoglyphs using AI deep learning

4 June 2023

4 June 2023

Scientists from Japan used AI deep learning to discover new geoglyphs in the Arid Peruvian coastal plain, in the northern...

The Enigmatic Architecture of Sacsayhuaman: The Sacred Stronghold of Massive Stones and Mysteries

14 March 2025

14 March 2025

Sacsayhuaman Fortress, located just outside Cusco, Peru, is one of the most astonishing archaeological complexes in the world. Initiated by...

Hundreds of skeletons found on Welsh beach

4 July 2021

4 July 2021

Archaeologists found the burial site of women and children just below the surface of the sand dunes on Whitesands Bay...

3,000-year-old necropolis found in southeast of Türkiye

16 October 2023

16 October 2023

A 3,000-year-old necropolis was unearthed during the excavations carried out in the Cehennem Deresi (Hell Creek) in Bağözü village of...

Archaeologists discover 1,300-year-old ski trapped in Norwegian ice

6 October 2021

6 October 2021

The melting of an ice sheet in Norway has uncovered a pair of remarkably well-preserved skis that had been undisturbed...