New findings on the remains from graves K1 and K2 from the St. Vitus Rotunda at Prague Castle

Abstract

The subject of the article is a new analysis of available information on graves K1 and K2 in the nave of the pre-Romanesque St. Vitus Rotunda; discovered in 1911, the graves have been attributed to various Přemyslid princes. The main work involved a review of anthropological findings, analyses of stable carbon (δ¹³C) and nitrogen (δ¹⁵N) isotopes, a DNA analysis and radiocarbon dating. Taken together, obtained data do not provide a consistent image. Archaeology rules out the attribution of the remains to Prince Bořivoji I († c. 888/889), while anthropology eliminates the possibility of the burial of Boleslav I († 972). With a high degree of probability, both of these scientific disciplines would permit the identification of the individual as Prince Boleslav II († 999), but this possibility is then eliminated by radiocarbon dating. The author suggests the possibility of attributing the remains to a son of Prince Boleslav I, an individual whose name is not documented in written sources and who died before 972. A DNA analysis revealed that the remains in grave K2 belonged to a woman, i.e. probably the wife of the individual buried in grave K1.