Archaeologists Discovered The Remains Of A Lost Church Buried Beneath The Ground For Centuries Near A Medieval Royal Palace In Hungary
Near a medieval royal palace, the remains of a lost church lay beneath the ground for centuries until it was unearthed by archaeologists.
They were found during excavations below a tennis court at Visegrád, a castle town in Hungary located north of the capital city of Budapest. The site is known for its medieval ruins.
The lost church was once part of a Franciscan monastery that was founded in A.D. 1425 by King Sigismund.
He became king of Hungary in 1387 but ruled over other European countries as well. In 1433, he was crowned Holy Roman Emperor.
The Holy Roman Empire was made up of the western, central, and southern regions of Europe. It lasted for 1,000 years until it fell during the Napoleonic Wars in 1806.
After the monastery at Visegrád was founded, the Church of the Virgin Mary was erected on a hilltop overlooking the Danube River.
Within the first couple of days of excavations, the church’s sanctuary and its high altar were discovered.
In front of the main altar, archaeologists came across a large crypt, which appeared to have been ransacked by thieves after the monastery was deserted.
Inside the crypt, the skeletons of three individuals were found, according to the National Archaeological Institute of Hungary.
SAndor – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only
Next to them, there were several lead bullets for rifles, spurs, and a copper bowl with indentations that looked as if they were made with weapons.
These objects indicate that they were soldiers and that the church may have been used as a base for defense purposes. Additionally, the church contained signs of a bloody confrontation.
When Visegrád came under the control of the Ottoman Empire in 1544, the church may have been destroyed.
The Ottoman Empire was established in Anatolia by Turkish tribes. During the 15th and 16th centuries, it was one of the most powerful states in the world.
At its height, the empire stretched across most of southeastern Europe, along with parts of North Africa and the Middle East.
The researchers are unsure who the crypt had been built for, but they believe that further excavations will reveal the answer, as well as other long-buried secrets. More archaeological work is yet to come at the site of Visegrád!
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