Archaeo-anthropological analysis of the early to late Middle Age (7-14th century) parish church and graveyard from Sursee, Switzerland.

Summary

In 1985/86 the parish church of St. Georg, Sursee was excavated. The archaeological findings showed that the ecclesiastical beginnings of the church date back to the early Middle Ages.

In the early 7th century CE a wooden church was built near burials dating back to late antiquity. In total, five occupational phases for the cemetery can be associated with five construction phases (one wooden and four stone phases) of the church. Of the 223 recovered burials, only 119 individuals were anthropologically analyzed (age, sex, body height) due to poor preservation. All age ranges from perinatal to late adulthood were determined. The fact that many infants were buried under the roofline of the church is of cultural significance for this time. Within the studied adult sample both sexes are represent in equal numbers.

Additionally, several cases are of paleopathological interest. A hydrocephalitic skull of a 5-7 year old child, as well as long-bone fractures and a high percentage of osteoarthritis in the spinal column (all regions affected) were identified.

One of the most important contributions of this study is that it develops our anthropological, paleopathological and cultural understanding of the fascinating transitional era of early Christianity in Medieval Central Switzerland.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 81st Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL (2016)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage