A 19th-century cemetery belonging to the German community in the Targu Neamt area has recently been discovered by a team of researchers from Germany.

The team, from the University of Erlangen-Nurnberg, came to the area to carry out non-invasive archaeological research as part of a joint project with archaeologists from the Neamt National Museum Complex.

According to researcher Vasile Diaconu of the Targu Neamt Museum of History and Ethnography, the investigations use modern technologies to detect underground man-made structures, providing archaeologists with precise information on the location of remains.

While the primary aim of the research is to study prehistoric settlements, the German specialists, together with local archaeologists, decided to examine a site that had remained largely unknown until now.

The discovery began with the recent identification of several 19th-century maps of the Targu Neamt area. These maps indicated the presence of a site for which no historical information existed - a German cemetery located on the eastern outskirts of the town at the time.

Based on this information, Diaconu and the German team carried out a geophysical scan of the area to verify the existence of a burial site and the accuracy of the historical maps. He noted that the effort was far from straightforward, as the site is now used as pastureland and shows no visible traces of a cemetery.

'Thanks to the efforts of my colleague Iulian Maftei, who found those maps, we embarked on this endeavour, although I was almost convinced we would not be able to identify the cemetery, given the lack of any visible landmarks. However, with the technology and field experience of our colleagues from Erlangen, we managed to identify the traces of the funerary site. Even if it is not very old, in my view it is an exceptional discovery, with no prior documentary sources, which will enrich local history,' Diaconu said.

According to measurements by the German team, the cemetery was relatively small but enclosed by a walled perimeter, while geomagnetic mapping clearly revealed the presence of graves.

Researchers from the University of Erlangen welcomed the discovery, noting its historical significance.

'Our research revealed a rectangular enclosure covering an area of nearly 400 square metres, and the scans identified the outlines of at least 10 graves, which most likely had headstones. It is an interesting discovery, but one that must be confirmed through archaeological excavation. It also has a certain emotional value, as it concerns a burial site that belonged to our compatriots in the 19th century,' said team coordinator Dr Carsten Mischka.

Local archaeologists plan to conduct further excavations to validate the geophysical findings and obtain more detailed historical information.

Researchers say that non-invasive methods can uncover remarkable findings, even from relatively recent periods for which historical data is limited. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Gabriel Apetrii; EN - writing by: Simona Iacob)