Westminster Abbey mystery: Medieval abbot likely buried in reused Roman sarcophagus

Archaeologists have nearly solved a 150-year-old mystery regarding a Roman-era limestone sarcophagus discovered at Westminster Abbey. While the vessel bears a Latin inscription dedicated to a Roman named Valerius Amandinus from the 4th century, the remains found inside belong to a much later individual.

New osteological analysis by specialist James Langthorne and research by archaeologist Warwick Rodwell, published in the Journal of the British Archaeological Association, reveal the skeleton belonged to a man approximately 1.75 meters tall, aged between 35 and 49 at the time of death. Radiocarbon dating confirms the individual died between 987 and 1052 CE.

By cross-referencing biological data with medieval abbey records, researchers have narrowed the identity of the occupant to two 11th-century abbots: Ælfwig and Wulfnoth. Warwick Rodwell identifies Ælfwig, who served as abbot from 993 to 1020 CE, as the most probable candidate, noting that Ælfwig was a lifelong monk at the abbey and likely would have been interred there.