A set of medical instruments dating back to the 1st century AD is a rare find. Similar ones were made only in the Roman city of Pompeii.

what is known

The Roman tomb is located about 55 kilometers east of Budapest, near the town of Jasberény in the Jasag region of central Hungary. It is impressive that a doctor equipped with such prestigious equipment visited this region, which the Romans considered “barbarian” lands – that’s what they called everything outside their own territory.

Current speculation is that a well-equipped doctor, probably trained in one of the Imperial headquarters, may have traveled to the area to save someone.
– Write the researchers in a paper published by the University bearing his name on April 25. Etvesha Loranda (ELTE) in Budapest.

The tools were found in two wooden chests at the bottom of the tomb, said Levente Samu, an archaeologist from ELTE and a member of the excavation team. These include pliers, needles, forceps and “high quality scalpels suitable for surgical procedures”.

The scalpels are made of copper alloy, decorated with silver and have removable steel blades. The diggers found a whetstone used for sharpening knives and possibly mixing herbs. Similar scalpels have been found in Roman Gaul, a region that now covers mostly France and the westernmost parts of Germany.

Archaeologists also found a nearly complete skeleton of the doctor, suggesting it was at the time of his death. was 50 or 60 years oldbut did not suffer from any obvious illness or injury.

Skeleton of a doctor / Photograph ELTE Faculty of Humanities

Skeleton of a doctor / Photograph ELTE Faculty of Humanities

One of the medical instruments / Photo ELTE Faculty of Humanities

It is unclear why the man went to this area. In the 1st century AD, it was under the rule of the Sarmatians of the Yazıgi tribe and played the role of a buffer state between Roman territory and the Dacians further north. The region became fully Romanized after the Marcomanni War of 166-188 AD, fought between Rome and various tribes, including the Germanic Marcomani and Sarmatian Yazigi. Rome won the war and the area became the border of the empire until the 5th century, when it was captured by the Huns.