• Campochiaro, Province of Campobasso, Region Molise, Italy

The cemetery of Morrione was laid out in the 7^th century in irregular rows of graves oriented east-west. The dead were buried lying in a supine position. Remnants of coffins have been found in only a few instances. At a remove of just 800 meters, the cemetery of Vicenne has a nearly identical layout. A noteworthy feature of both cemeteries is the presence of 19 mounted warriors' graves, each with an accompanying burial of a horse. This burial custom is extremely rare in Italy and has its closest parallels in the Avar burial grounds of Hungary, for example the necropolis of Zamárdi. In addition to the horse burials, the specific form of earrings found in women's graves and the decorative patterns of ornamental fittings found in men's graves are closely related to those of the Avars.

Grave 129 (front), woman's grave.
1. Stemmed glass.
2. Pair of golden earrings. Earrings of this type have been found in large numbers in the graves of Morrione and Vicenne but are otherwise unknown in Italy. Nearly identical forms occur in the early Avar graves of Hungary.

• Photographed while on display from 22 August 2008 to 11 January 2009 in the exhibition "Die Langobarden. Das Ende der Völkerwanderung" at the Rheinisches LandesMuseum Bonn. On loan from the Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici Molise, Campobasso.