20/10/2025
The skeletal remains of seven 4th Century AD Roman troops found at the bottom of a well
In 2011, Archaeologists excavated an old well in Osijek, Croatia, that contained the bodies of third-century Roman soldiers. Academics believe that the seven skeletons recovered for study were Roman soldiers who fought in the Battle of Mursa in 351 AD. At some stage these remains had to be hurriedly disposed of and tossing them in a well has been used throughout history on numerous occasions.
"Presumably, all of the individuals were stripped of any valuables: weapons, armour, equipment, jewelry, etc, before they were thrown into the well," study lead authour Mario Novak, a bioarchaeologist at the Institute for Anthropological Research in Zagreb, Croatia, told Live Science in an email". - Novak.
Each of the seven soldiers met horrible ends. Some had severe blunt force trauma to the head, others had multiple deep wounds to lower abdominal regions that would not be considered instantly fatal. Some of the perhaps worst of these soldiers had sword or dagger incisions that left numerous cuts deep into the bones of the ribs, arms and legs. This leads to the obvious hypothesis of torture, either for revenge, to gain information or even worse, both.
"Additional work is planned on a second mass burial found in another well in Mursa, Novak said, which is very similar to the one in the new study. "We presume these are also the remains of soldiers who lost their lives in the Battle of Mursa in 351 AD" - Novak.
All seven skeletons belonged to adult males, with four between ages 18 and 35 and three between 36 and 50 years old. The skeletons were later studied using a multidisciplinary approach, with detailed findings published in 2025. Researchers used C/N stable isotope analysis and ancient DNA (aDNA) analysis through shallow shotgun sequencing to study the remains.
Constantius, who had been fighting the Sasanian Empire in the east, marched west to confront Magnentius. In September 351 AD, Magnentius besieged Mursa but was forced to retreat. Despite his loss at Mursa, Magnentius was not completely defeated until two years later at the Battle of Mons Seleucus in Gaul. After this final defeat, he committed su***de. Constantius became sole Emperor after the defeat and death of Magnentius left Constantius II as the sole ruler of the Roman Empire. However, the civil war drained vital resources that could have been used to fight growing threats along the borders.