Silbersporen – Luxuriös bestattet

Archäologische Staatssammlung München

Description

Seven men were buried together at the end of the 7th century in a burial chamber measuring 4.6 x 2.2 m in Ergolding, Lower Bavaria. Their cause of death could not be determined but they had obviously died at the same time because three of them had been laid in the grave with their arms hooked underneath each other. The similarities between the seven men were made clear with their burial. Armed with swords, shields and lances, they reveal themselves as brothers in arms. Among the sword forms, a long single-edged sabre is particularly striking, as used by the Awarians, an Asian mounted tribe who had contacts with the Bavarians, not only of a warlike nature. Wide silver spurs on a dead man's feet also indicate that the dead from Ergolding must have been mounted warriors. However, the spurs are only made of very thin silver sheet metal and were not riveted to a leather strap but just sewn on, so they could hardly have withstood the everyday stress when riding. They were therefore used exclusively for representation purposes. There are no other comparable pieces known yet in the rich find material of the Early Middle Ages from Bavaria. The Ergolding warrior will have used solid iron spurs for daily use, but on official occasions, like his funeral, the wide silver spurs obviously made a greater impression.

Author

Archäologische Staatssammlung München

Rights Statement Description

CC BY-NC-SA 4.0