A study published in January revealed an intricate connection of peoples throughout early Medieval Europe, which may be a long-lost pagan cult.
A bronze belt buckle found by a metal detectorist around 20 miles outside of Prague started the strange investigation, according to a Live Science piece published Thursday. The buckles depict a dragon or snake-like creature eating a person or frog-like animal.
Archaeologists claim the buckle came from the Czech Republic and was initially believed to be unique. But it turns out dozens of similar buckles have been found in Germany, Hungary and elsewhere in the Czech Republic.
Medieval belt buckle of ‘dragon’ eating frog discovered in Czech Republic may be from unknown pagan cult – https://t.co/jbLPMBXuWP pic.twitter.com/G3OwbQiph2
— news (@newsallone1) January 4, 2024
“I realized that we were looking at a previously unknown pagan cult that linked different regions of central Europe in the early Middle Ages, before the arrival of Christianity,” Masaryk University archaeologist Jiří Macháček said in a statement.
What most archaeologists and historians call “Pagan” is actually just the peoples who ruled Europe prior to the influx of Christians and the subsequent ownership by the Catholic church. The term has negative connotations, largely due to propaganda pushed by invaders throughout history. And we definitely weren’t a “cult.” (RELATED: Pagan ‘Center Of Royalty’ Unearthed In ‘Rare And Remarkable’ Discovery)
What I see on this belt buckle is no different to what I see on the Welsh flag, which survives to this day. It’s a dragon. And it wouldn’t surprise me if the Welsh people once ruled all of Europe. Our language survives in pockets across the continent, so perhaps this is just one of the last pieces of our empire?