LEÓN, SPAIN—Researchers have now studied the remains of an infant unearthed during emergency excavations in 2006 at the sacristy of the Siervas de Jesus convent in northwestern Spain, Phys.org reports. What made the initial discovery so unusual was that the infant was actually buried within a building belonging to the former Roman fort of Legio VI Victrix, making it the only child burial ever found in a military context in Iberia. During his reign from 27 b.c. to a.d. 14, the emperor Augustus passed a series of laws that strictly forbade Roman soldiers from marrying during their service time, although these were not always successful in keeping wives and women away from military camps. The small skeleton was interred beneath a doorway to the contubernium workshop, a space typically associated with the daily activities of lower-ranking soldiers. Recent analysis determined that the child died right around the time of its birth, sometime between 47 b.c and a.d. 61. The infant may not have been fully developed, suggesting the mother may have experienced poor nutrition, illness, or stress during gestation. The researchers propose that the presence of an infant indicate it lived during a transitional phase, as older customs allowing women and children within legionary fortresses persisted despite new laws. Its interment was likely part of a foundation burial ritual to secure divine protection and ensure the soldiers' success. To read about the contents of a glass burial urn recovered from a Roman tomb in southwestern Spain, go to "A Nightcap for the Ages."
