Ancient DNA analysis of a 1,600-year-old burial in northern Germany has revealed a rare strain of leprosy previously undetected in Central or Northern Europe. The discovery also offers new clues about the movement of people and diseases across Europe during the Early Middle Ages.
The findings come from the Fallward burial ground, located near the North Sea coast in what is now the district of Cuxhaven, Germany. Researchers from Kiel University and the Lower Saxony Institute for Historical Coastal Research examined skeletal remains from eleven individuals buried at the site, uncovering evidence that one man had genetic connections to populations living along the Roman Empire’s Danubian frontier.
“Genetic analyses confirm that a man buried at Fallward originated from the Danube region. He was also infected with a very rare leprosy pathogen. He is the first individual from this group to have been identified in Europe,” says Daniel Myburgh of the Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology at Kiel University, lead author of the study published in iScience.
The Fallward settlement was established on an artificial mound in the marshlands between the Elbe and Weser rivers. Such elevated settlements provided protection against flooding and storm surges before the construction of coastal dykes. The surrounding fertile marshland also supported agriculture.
Excavations conducted during the 1990s uncovered a cemetery containing approximately 200 cremation burials and 60 inhumations, dating from the late third to the fifth centuries. The waterlogged conditions preserved an extraordinary collection of organic materials, including wooden furniture, textiles, clothing, bedding and other grave goods that would ordinarily have decomposed.
Among the most remarkable discoveries was grave 265, containing the remains of a man approximately 50 years old who had been buried during the second quarter of the fifth century.
His body was placed inside an oak boat measuring more than four metres long, which had been covered with wooden panels forming a roof-like structure. The burial also contained an elaborate collection of objects, suggesting that the deceased occupied a privileged position within his community.
Outside the boat stood a richly decorated chair carved from an alder trunk, sometimes interpreted as a throne or symbol of authority. At the man’s feet was a maple footstool decorated with a hunting scene and a runic inscription. Other objects included a gaming table, bronze basin, ceramic vessel and a late Roman military belt. They showed signs of use and repair, suggesting that they had belonged to the deceased or his household rather than being manufactured specifically for his funeral.
The burial also provides clues about his everyday activities. Archaeologists found fish bones, a reed mat and a small box shaped like a water bird. Examination of his skeleton revealed particularly well-developed upper arm muscles, raising the possibility that he had worked as a boatman or fisherman.
As part of a new research project examining the Fallward cemetery, scientists obtained twelve skeletal samples from eleven individuals to investigate their genetic ancestry and search for evidence of infectious diseases.
Although DNA preservation was limited, three individuals yielded sufficient genetic information for comparisons with ancient and modern populations. Two showed genetic affinities with northwestern European populations, particularly groups associated with Iron Age Britain and the early medieval Anglo-Saxons. The third individual, the man from grave 265, produced a different result.
His genetic profile showed similarities to populations living along the Roman frontier in the Danube region, including areas of present-day Croatia, Slovenia, Hungary and Serbia.
These findings suggest that the man, or his recent ancestors, may have come from southeastern or central Europe before settling near the North Sea coast. However, the researchers caution that the surviving genetic evidence is insufficient to establish his precise birthplace.
The Roman military belt found in his grave adds another dimension to this possibility. Such objects were associated with the late Roman military, although they could also circulate through trade, inheritance or warfare.
The researchers suggest that he may have served as a foederatus, a warrior recruited into Roman military service, before moving northwards. Alternatively, he could have travelled as a merchant or maintained connections with communities farther south.
A Rare Strain of Leprosy
The most significant discovery came when scientists examined the man’s tooth and heel bone for traces of ancient pathogens. They identified DNA belonging to Mycobacterium leprae, the bacterium responsible for leprosy, also known as Hansen’s disease.
By reconstructing the bacterial genome and comparing it with 44 ancient and 185 modern strains, the researchers determined that the infection belonged to branch 4, a lineage not previously identified in Central or Northern Europe.
The oldest known representative of this branch comes from an Egyptian mummy dating between the fourth and second centuries BC. The strain recovered from Fallward represents an early example of this bacterial lineage and provides additional evidence for the geographical diversity of leprosy in antiquity.
Remarkably, the man’s skeleton showed no characteristic bone damage associated with the disease.
“Leprosy is a chronic disease,” explains Professor Almut Nebel of Kiel University, a co-author of the study. “It can take years for clear symptoms to appear. The man had not yet suffered any bone damage. Either he was affected by an asymptomatic form of the disease, or the disease had so far only affected soft tissues. He may have travelled long distances whilst carrying the disease.”
The absence of skeletal lesions means that archaeologists examining the bones alone would not have recognised the infection. Ancient DNA analysis therefore provides evidence of a disease that otherwise would have remained invisible.
The researchers also suggest that the man probably passed away from an unrelated cause, although the precise circumstances of his death remain unknown.
Mobility and Disease in the Fifth Century
The fifth century was a period of major political and demographic change across Europe. The Western Roman Empire was weakening, while groups including the Goths, Vandals, Huns and Franks reshaped the political landscape. Military service, trade and migration brought people into contact across considerable distances.
The Fallward discovery illustrates how these connections could extend to communities far beyond the Roman Empire’s frontiers.
The man’s grave goods suggest familiarity with Roman material culture, while his genetic profile indicates possible connections with the Danubian frontier. The leprosy strain adds another layer to this story, demonstrating how infectious diseases could circulate through the same networks that connected distant populations.
“He could, for example, have been a mercenary in the Roman army who later settled between the Elbe and the Weser. Or he might have undertaken long journeys as a trader,” says Professor Ben Krause-Kyora of Kiel University, who led the research.
Although it remains impossible to reconstruct the man’s travels or determine where he contracted leprosy, the combination of archaeological and genetic evidence provides an unusually detailed picture of an individual living during a period of profound historical change.
The findings also demonstrate the importance of revisiting archaeological collections using modern scientific techniques. More than three decades after the Fallward cemetery was excavated, its remarkably preserved burials are continuing to reveal new information about the people who lived along the North Sea coast during the early Middle Ages.
The study, “Paleogenomics reveals leprosy at the late antique burial site of Fallward in northern Germany”, by Daniel Anton Myburgh, Nicolas Antonio da Silva, Joanna H. Romeyer-Dherbey, Silke Grefen-Peters, Hauke Jöns, Christina Peek, Almut Nebel and Ben Krause-Kyora, is published in the journal iScience. Click here to read it.
Ancient DNA analysis of a 1,600-year-old burial in northern Germany has revealed a rare strain of leprosy previously undetected in Central or Northern Europe. The discovery also offers new clues about the movement of people and diseases across Europe during the Early Middle Ages.
The findings come from the Fallward burial ground, located near the North Sea coast in what is now the district of Cuxhaven, Germany. Researchers from Kiel University and the Lower Saxony Institute for Historical Coastal Research examined skeletal remains from eleven individuals buried at the site, uncovering evidence that one man had genetic connections to populations living along the Roman Empire’s Danubian frontier.
“Genetic analyses confirm that a man buried at Fallward originated from the Danube region. He was also infected with a very rare leprosy pathogen. He is the first individual from this group to have been identified in Europe,” says Daniel Myburgh of the Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology at Kiel University, lead author of the study published in iScience.
An Unusual Burial on the North Sea Coast
The Fallward settlement was established on an artificial mound in the marshlands between the Elbe and Weser rivers. Such elevated settlements provided protection against flooding and storm surges before the construction of coastal dykes. The surrounding fertile marshland also supported agriculture.
Excavations conducted during the 1990s uncovered a cemetery containing approximately 200 cremation burials and 60 inhumations, dating from the late third to the fifth centuries. The waterlogged conditions preserved an extraordinary collection of organic materials, including wooden furniture, textiles, clothing, bedding and other grave goods that would ordinarily have decomposed.
Among the most remarkable discoveries was grave 265, containing the remains of a man approximately 50 years old who had been buried during the second quarter of the fifth century.
His body was placed inside an oak boat measuring more than four metres long, which had been covered with wooden panels forming a roof-like structure. The burial also contained an elaborate collection of objects, suggesting that the deceased occupied a privileged position within his community.
Outside the boat stood a richly decorated chair carved from an alder trunk, sometimes interpreted as a throne or symbol of authority. At the man’s feet was a maple footstool decorated with a hunting scene and a runic inscription. Other objects included a gaming table, bronze basin, ceramic vessel and a late Roman military belt. They showed signs of use and repair, suggesting that they had belonged to the deceased or his household rather than being manufactured specifically for his funeral.
The burial also provides clues about his everyday activities. Archaeologists found fish bones, a reed mat and a small box shaped like a water bird. Examination of his skeleton revealed particularly well-developed upper arm muscles, raising the possibility that he had worked as a boatman or fisherman.
Ancient DNA Reveals an Unexpected Connection
As part of a new research project examining the Fallward cemetery, scientists obtained twelve skeletal samples from eleven individuals to investigate their genetic ancestry and search for evidence of infectious diseases.
Although DNA preservation was limited, three individuals yielded sufficient genetic information for comparisons with ancient and modern populations. Two showed genetic affinities with northwestern European populations, particularly groups associated with Iron Age Britain and the early medieval Anglo-Saxons. The third individual, the man from grave 265, produced a different result.
His genetic profile showed similarities to populations living along the Roman frontier in the Danube region, including areas of present-day Croatia, Slovenia, Hungary and Serbia.
These findings suggest that the man, or his recent ancestors, may have come from southeastern or central Europe before settling near the North Sea coast. However, the researchers caution that the surviving genetic evidence is insufficient to establish his precise birthplace.
The Roman military belt found in his grave adds another dimension to this possibility. Such objects were associated with the late Roman military, although they could also circulate through trade, inheritance or warfare.
The researchers suggest that he may have served as a foederatus, a warrior recruited into Roman military service, before moving northwards. Alternatively, he could have travelled as a merchant or maintained connections with communities farther south.
A Rare Strain of Leprosy
The most significant discovery came when scientists examined the man’s tooth and heel bone for traces of ancient pathogens. They identified DNA belonging to Mycobacterium leprae, the bacterium responsible for leprosy, also known as Hansen’s disease.
By reconstructing the bacterial genome and comparing it with 44 ancient and 185 modern strains, the researchers determined that the infection belonged to branch 4, a lineage not previously identified in Central or Northern Europe.
The oldest known representative of this branch comes from an Egyptian mummy dating between the fourth and second centuries BC. The strain recovered from Fallward represents an early example of this bacterial lineage and provides additional evidence for the geographical diversity of leprosy in antiquity.
Remarkably, the man’s skeleton showed no characteristic bone damage associated with the disease.
“Leprosy is a chronic disease,” explains Professor Almut Nebel of Kiel University, a co-author of the study. “It can take years for clear symptoms to appear. The man had not yet suffered any bone damage. Either he was affected by an asymptomatic form of the disease, or the disease had so far only affected soft tissues. He may have travelled long distances whilst carrying the disease.”
The absence of skeletal lesions means that archaeologists examining the bones alone would not have recognised the infection. Ancient DNA analysis therefore provides evidence of a disease that otherwise would have remained invisible.
The researchers also suggest that the man probably passed away from an unrelated cause, although the precise circumstances of his death remain unknown.
Mobility and Disease in the Fifth Century
The fifth century was a period of major political and demographic change across Europe. The Western Roman Empire was weakening, while groups including the Goths, Vandals, Huns and Franks reshaped the political landscape. Military service, trade and migration brought people into contact across considerable distances.
The Fallward discovery illustrates how these connections could extend to communities far beyond the Roman Empire’s frontiers.
The man’s grave goods suggest familiarity with Roman material culture, while his genetic profile indicates possible connections with the Danubian frontier. The leprosy strain adds another layer to this story, demonstrating how infectious diseases could circulate through the same networks that connected distant populations.
“He could, for example, have been a mercenary in the Roman army who later settled between the Elbe and the Weser. Or he might have undertaken long journeys as a trader,” says Professor Ben Krause-Kyora of Kiel University, who led the research.
Although it remains impossible to reconstruct the man’s travels or determine where he contracted leprosy, the combination of archaeological and genetic evidence provides an unusually detailed picture of an individual living during a period of profound historical change.
The findings also demonstrate the importance of revisiting archaeological collections using modern scientific techniques. More than three decades after the Fallward cemetery was excavated, its remarkably preserved burials are continuing to reveal new information about the people who lived along the North Sea coast during the early Middle Ages.
The study, “Paleogenomics reveals leprosy at the late antique burial site of Fallward in northern Germany”, by Daniel Anton Myburgh, Nicolas Antonio da Silva, Joanna H. Romeyer-Dherbey, Silke Grefen-Peters, Hauke Jöns, Christina Peek, Almut Nebel and Ben Krause-Kyora, is published in the journal iScience. Click here to read it.
Top Image: DNA analyses confirm that a man buried in Fallward in the 5th century originated from the Danube region. They also show that he was infected with a leprosy pathogen originating from the Mediterranean region. © Petra Horstmann, Cluster ROOTS/Uni Kiel
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