Late antique lamellar armours from Kranj

This extraordinary archaeological discovery from 2005 put the Gorenjska Museum on the map of Europe’s most important late antique finds. In a garden in Kranj’s old town centre, archaeologists uncovered two lamellar armours and the famous ango spear – weapons and protective gear that about 1,500 years ago belonged to warriors of the highest social and military rank. The ango belonged to the Frankish–Alamannic elite; the armours to the Byzantine elite.

The Kranj armours are among only seven nearly complete specimens from the 6th and 7th centuries found across a region stretching from the Caucasus to Spain. Because of their exceptional state of preservation they are an invaluable source for research into late antique military equipment and rank among the most important archaeological finds of this period in Europe.

The exhibition also reveals the exceptional significance of ancient Carnium, the forerunner of today’s Kranj, which was an important strategic point at the meeting of the Byzantine and Frankish worlds. The objects are not only precious archaeological finds – they tell a story of power, prestige and a turbulent time when the face of early medieval Europe was taking shape.