Who lived in Europe’s last pagan state? The answer surprised the scientists
Lithuania went down in history as Europe’s last pagan state. It did not officially adopt Catholicism until 1387, by which time almost the entire continent had long since become Christian.
However, new research has shown that even before that, Vilnius was a city to which people from various regions of Eastern Europe had been travelling. Analysis of the remains of the earliest Christians has helped researchers establish that some of them were born far beyond the borders of Lithuania.
The study has been published in the journal *Antiquity*.
Where did the first inhabitants come from?
Archaeologists have investigated a medieval cemetery dating from the 13th–14th centuries on Bokšto Street in Vilnius’s Old Town.
For a long time, Byzantine-style jewellery, crosses and other artefacts had pointed to links with the Orthodox world and the lands of Rus’. Now, researchers have obtained the first direct confirmation of this hypothesis.
Using isotopic analysis of teeth and bones, the researchers have established that some of the people buried here grew up in regions that today correspond to western Ukraine and southern Poland — territories that were part of the former Kievan Rus’.
Vilnius turned out to be a city of migrants
The study revealed another interesting pattern.
Most of the men buried in this cemetery had probably come from other regions, whilst most of the women were local residents of Vilnius.
According to the authors of the study, this suggests that the city’s early Christian community was formed through migration and mixed marriages. Local women probably converted to Christianity after coming into contact with settlers from Orthodox lands.
Not as isolated a world as previously thought
These findings challenge our understanding of medieval Lithuania.
Despite the state’s official pagan status, its capital was already closely linked to neighbouring countries through trade, population movements and cultural contacts.
The authors note that migration may have been facilitated by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania’s political ties with Russian lands, trade, religious reasons, or the consequences of the Black Death epidemic that swept across Europe in the 14th century.
How this was discovered
Isotopic analysis of human remains played a key role.
By analysing the chemical composition of teeth and bones, scientists can determine where a person grew up, what water they drank and what they ate during their childhood. Combined with archaeological finds, this method makes it possible to reconstruct the history of human migration hundreds of years after their death.
Why this is important
The research shows that medieval cities were far more open and multicultural than is commonly believed.
It also demonstrates how modern analytical methods help historians and archaeologists reconstruct the real life stories of people who lived many centuries ago.
Background
Lithuania remained Europe’s last officially pagan state until the end of the 14th century. Catholicism did not become the state religion until 1387. However, Orthodox communities already existed within the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and its inhabitants were actively engaged with the neighbouring lands of Rus’ and Byzantium.
Source
Giedrė Motuzaitė Matuzevičiūtė et al. Multiproxy analysis reveals migration and potential origins of the first Christians in medieval Vilnius. Antiquity (2026).