Remains found in a grave in northwestern Spain likely belong to a 9th-century bishop believed to have helped found one of Christian’s most popular pilgrimage routes, the Way of Santiago, a new study has found.
A study published in the journal Antiquity on Tuesday said a combination of bone analysis, carbon dating, stable isotope analysis and DNA testing “confirms” that the remains found in 1955 likely belonged to Bishop Theodomir.
According to oral tradition, which was later recorded, Teodomir received divine revelation and discovered the tomb of Saint James the Apostle between 820 and 830 in what is now Santiago de Compostela, the capital of the region of Galicia.
News of the discovery reached Alfonso II, king of the neighboring region of Asturias, who led his court on a march from Oviedo to Santiago.
The 90-mile royal pilgrimage established the oldest route used by pilgrims on the Camino, or Way of St. James, known today as the “Primitive Way.”
Teodomir’s existence was hotly debated until 1955, when Spanish archaeologist Manuel Chamozo Lamas discovered a tombstone bearing his name beneath the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.
Initial investigations concluded that the remains were likely those of an older adult male, but 30 years later, a new assessment based on photographs of the site determined that they were those of a woman between 50 and 70 years old.
The latest study, led by Paxi Pérez-Ramarro of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, combined different analytical methods to try to reconstruct individuals’ life stories.
Carbon-14 dating determined that the individual died after the age of 45, and bone characteristics suggest that he was of frail build and performed little physical labor throughout his life, consistent with the lifestyle of a prelate of the time.
“There is a 98 percent chance that it is Teodomir,” Pérez Ramajó told El Pais newspaper.
