Anonymous donor hands 2,000-year-old Vandal artefacts to Polish museum

An anonymous donor handed a collection of ancient artefacts to the Father Stanisław Staszic Museum in Hrubieszów, eastern Poland.

The items belong to the Vandals, a Germanic people who lived in the region during the Iron Age and Roman period before moving toward the Roman Empire. The collection includes a sword, spear and javelin heads, shield components, and spurs. Museum staff received the items through an intermediary, though they do not know the exact location of the original burial.

The objects are in poor condition because they were exposed to high temperatures during a funeral ritual where the deceased was burned with their belongings. The museum says the quality of the items suggests the owner held a high social position. The museum plans to conduct archaeological excavations next summer to verify the find site. Information suggests the burial was discovered in an agricultural field in the municipality of Werbkowice several years ago.

Experts believe there may be more similar burials in the area that were disturbed by farming. A local metal detectorist helped arrange the transfer of these objects to the museum.