Ancient DNA analysis sheds light on two individuals buried in a mutual embrace at the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Cathedral in Opole, Poland

Abstract

Double and multiple burials offer rare insights into social bonds and funerary ideology. Often, the interment of multiple individuals in a common burial pit is interpreted as reflecting social or biological bonds that connected the deceased in life. When an adult and a child are buried together, the individuals are commonly treated as biologically related, while mixed-sex adult burials are interpreted as married couples. These assumptions, however, almost always require revision. Family structures and interpersonal relationships are complex and are not always unambiguously expressed in funerary practice. In this context, modern research techniques, particularly ancient DNA analysis, can reveal basic biological parameters, such as genetic sex and kinship between individuals buried in a common grave. Here, we integrate ancient DNA data with osteological and archaeological evidence to re-evaluate a unique double burial of two adults discovered adjacent to the 13th-century Cathedral of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in Opole, Poland. This burial represents the first genetically confirmed same-sex burial in medieval Poland. By combining genetic and contextual evidence, we move beyond traditional assumptions of conjugal or close-kin relationships.