Why An Egg?
People in the 600’s AD Langenpreising, Germany, were buried with some interesting things. They could be buried with weapons, belts and an array of ornaments.
But the five-year-old child that archeologists from the Bavarian State Office for Monument Preservation found was buried with one hard-boiled egg.
It was placed on his stomach, which was common for food burials. And people frequently buried children with food.
However, eggs are rare. There have been a handful of clay decorated eggs, and some goose eggs in various places in Italy, sometimes buried with young women. But this kid got a standard chicken egg like you would have for breakfast.
Perhaps his parents wanted to give him a final meal, or they buried it with him to symbolize rebirth. Or…we could all take a guess.
Funeral practices are always in flux, and few people write coherent essays on how they grieve. What we know is a family lost their child young and gave them a final parting gift that must have meant something to them.