Ancient Roman Twin Burial in Croatia Reveals Link to Lead Poisoning and Infant Mortality!
In the coastal town of Trogir, Croatia, archaeologists uncovered a poignant reminder of the fragility of life in ancient times. During construction work on a private car park back in 2016, an extraordinary discovery was made in the Roman cemetery of Dragulin: the skeletal remains of newborn twins, one boy and one girl, laid to rest face-to-face in a shared grave.
This touching burial, recently published in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, has been the subject of detailed analysis by an international team of researchers. Their findings offer rare insight into infant mortality, maternal health, and Roman-era living conditions.
Photo Credit: Drawing by M. Daniel Watkins. Credit: A. Osterholtz et al., Journal of Archaeological Science, Reports (2025)
Genetic testing confirmed the infants were fraternal twins, and evidence suggests they died either at birth or shortly thereafter, sometime between the late 1st and late 2nd century CE. The fact that they were interred together strongly indicates they passed away within a short span of each other, possibly as stillbirths.
As lead researcher Dr Anna Osterholtz from Mississippi State University noted, the grave was found in a part of the cemetery reserved for the community’s youngest. Despite the poor preservation of the remains, the skeletons revealed clues about their health, and, crucially, the health of their mother.
Both babies showed signs of severe, long-term nutritional deficiencies. They suffered from scurvy and rickets, conditions caused by a lack of vitamin C and D, respectively. These illnesses point towards maternal malnutrition during pregnancy and breastfeeding. Since babies under six months receive all their nourishment either in the womb or through breast milk, the twins’ condition reflected their mother’s compromised health.
One likely contributing factor was lead poisoning, which was widespread in the Roman world. Romans used lead extensively in water systems, cooking pots, paints, and even to sweeten wine. Chronic lead exposure disrupts nutrient absorption, impairs brain development, and has been linked to miscarriages, stillbirths, and infant deaths.
Photo Credit: A. Osterholtz et al., Journal of Archaeological Science, Reports (2025)
Although the twins' bones weren’t chemically tested for lead, similar remains from nearby areas have shown dangerously high lead levels. The porous and abnormally developed bone tissue in these infants matches symptoms associated with lead toxicity.
As the researchers noted, “Their mother was unlikely to be able to produce breast milk that would have been nutritious enough to help, possibly due to increased exposure to lead that she also passed along through breast milk.”
What makes this discovery especially moving is the way the infants were buried, delicately positioned face-to-face. This rare and intimate burial arrangement hints at the emotional weight of their loss. While we must be careful not to impose modern sentiments on ancient practices, the careful placement of their tiny bodies suggests love, grief, and a desire to honour their brief lives.
“This posture suggests to us that care was expended in placing the burials, that they were loved and would be missed in their family,” the researchers reflected.
This twin burial marks not only a rare find in Roman Croatia, but it also represents the first published osteobiography (life history told through bones) from the Dragulin cemetery. Conducted by Osterholtz alongside researchers Mario Novak, Mario Carić, and Lujana Paraman, the study deepens our understanding of Roman-era health, mortality, and the hidden environmental dangers that may have shaped the fate of individuals, and perhaps entire communities.