Hand in hand for 600 years: Two male Black Death victims are found with fingers entwined by London Crossrail diggers

  • The two men, believed to be in their 40s, were found in a 15th century
  • Archaeologists said the men may have been related by blood or lovers
  • One of the men was found with a healed fracture on his arm which researchers suggested could have been a injury of self defence from an assault

By DAISY DUNNE FOR MAILONLINE

Published: | Updated:

Two male Black Death victims who have been holding hands beneath the streets of London for more than 600 years were unearthed by Crossrail diggers.

The pair were found facing each other with their hands entwined in a double grave in a 15th century burial ground for victims of the Plague in central London.

The discovery has puzzled archaeologists, who have suggested that the men may have been family members or lovers.

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Two male Black Death victims were found hand in hand (circled) in a double grave by London Crossrail diggers.  The discovery has puzzled archaeologists, who have suggested that the men may have been family members or lovers

Two male Black Death victims were found hand in hand (circled) in a double grave by London Crossrail diggers.  The discovery has puzzled archaeologists, who have suggested that the men may have been family members or lovers

WHY WERE THE MEN HAND IN HAND?

Researchers are still unsure as to why the pair were found with their hands entwined.

Don Walker, a senior osteologist at the Museum of London Archaeology, told MailOnline: 'It wasn't unusual in Medieval times for two or more people to be buried together side by side, and we usually interpret this as a familial connection.

'We know that this site was used to bury Plague victims and we know that the Plague moved very quickly, often killing several members of a family at the same time.  

'Because of this, we believe it's most likely that the two skeletons were actually family members.

'But to prove this, we will need to carry out DNA testing on the two skeletons to find out if they are related.  

'If they aren't related, then it's possible that there could be another explanation from them being buried together, including a romantic connection.' 

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Both men are believed to have been in their 40s when they died of the deadly disease.

Researchers said the pair fell victim to the plague in one of the epidemics that ravaged the capital in the years following the most deadly outbreak in 1348.

They were buried in a cemetery with more than 50,000 other corpses in Smithfield in the capital's centre.

The burial site is close to The Charterhouse monastery, which was founded in the 14th century as a place to pray for the dead.

Archaeologists excavated the site in 2013 to make way for the Crossrail tunnel, which open to customers in 2018. 

The team uncovered the remains of 25 individuals but were particularly drawn to find out more about the men found lying hand in hand.  

Don Walker, a senior osteologist at the Museum of London Archaeology, told MailOnline: 'It wasn't unusual in Medieval times for two or more people to be buried together side by side, and we usually interpret this as a familial connection.

'We know that this site was used to bury Plague victims and we know that the Plague moved very quickly, often killing several members of a family at the same time.  

The pair were found facing each other with their hands entwined in a double grave in a 15th century burial ground near Smithfield in Central London 

The pair were found facing each other with their hands entwined in a double grave in a 15th century burial ground near Smithfield in Central London 

Skeletons of a mother and child (pictured above) are among those which are to be excavated from the Bedlam burial ground, which is the site for the new Liverpool Street station that will serve London's Crossrail network
The Bedlam burial ground, which was used during the Great Plague in 1665, is at the site of the new Liverpool Street station that will serve the cross-London train line

Skeletons of a mother and child (pictured above) were previously excavated from Bedlam Hospital cemetery by Crossrail workers on March 6, 2015. The burial ground will be the site of the new Liverpool Street station

'Because of this, we believe it's most likely that the two skeletons were actually family members.

'But to prove this, we will need to carry out DNA testing on the two skeletons to find out if they are related.  

'If they aren't related, then it's possible that there could be another explanation from them being buried together, including a romantic connection.'

He added that the hands were found to be deliberately placed on top of one another, meaning their position in the ground was put together after their death.

'We know they couldn't have died holding hands,' he said. 'When they were discovered, they were found with one hand clasping on top of the other in a deliberate manner.'

One of the men, believed to be the older of the two, was found with a healed fracture on his arm which researchers suggested could have been a injury of self defence from an assault. 

Other Crossrail finds:  Pictured is a map showing some of the key finds across the capital such as Victorian ginger jars near Tottenham Court Road and medieval animal bones near Liverpool Street

Other Crossrail finds:  Pictured is a map showing some of the key finds across the capital such as Victorian ginger jars near Tottenham Court Road and medieval animal bones near Liverpool Street

'One possible interpretation is that they were related in some way, for example by blood or marriage,' Archaeologist Sam Pfizenmaier, who led the excavation, said to the Guardian.

He added that because the skeletons were found without any coffins or ceremonial wrapping, the position of the two men may have been accidental. 

Scientists discovered that the skeletons were victims of the plague after they extracted DNA from their bones.

Analysis of the DNA revealed that the men and women found had been exposed to Yersinia pestis, the pathogen that causes Black Death. 

Mr Walker said: 'We are still learning about the spread of medieval plague and the evolution of the disease as a whole

'Charterhouse helps us to understand how Londoners reacted to their first experience of the Black Death.' 

CROSSRAIL TEAM UNEARTH 20 ROMAN SKULLS 

Crossrail workers unearthed 20 Roman skulls, pictured, at the site of Bedlam hospital in east London in 2013

Crossrail workers unearthed 20 Roman skulls, pictured, at the site of Bedlam hospital in east London in 2013

The Crossrail project has already unearthed a number of exciting discoveries, including more than 10,000 artefacts at more than 40 construction sites.

In 2013, workers made an 'unexpected and fascinating discovery' in tunnels underneath Liverpool Street Station, where the historic River Walbrook flows.

The Crossrail team unearthed about 20 Roman skulls which were found buried in clusters in the sediment of the historic tributary. 

Working under the direction of archaeologists, the construction workers carefully removed the human skulls, as well as a collection of ancient Roman pottery.

For safety reasons the archaeologists had to leave the work to the tunnellers as the skulls were buried as deep as six metres below ground.

The discovery of the skulls and pottery was made below the site of the historic Bedlam burial ground.

Bedlam hospital was a psychiatric asylum and patients who died while at the hospital were buried in a cemetery first established in the 16th century.

Historically, Roman skulls have been found along the Thames tributary Walbrook during various excavations in the region. 

Prior to the discovery of the Roman skulls, workers also found about 4,000 skeletons buried in the Eldon Street area.

These skeletons were found in August 2013 and were carefully removed during major archaeological excavations last year.

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