Primary sourceArtifact5th century
Treasure of Pouan
5th century
A hoard of 5th-century gold and garnet jewelry found near Troyes, once mistakenly linked to a Visigothic king killed fighting Attila.
This burial hoard, found near the site traditionally linked to the Catalaunian Plains, was once connected to a king who died fighting Attila.
About this source
What it is
The Treasure of Pouan is a hoard of gold and garnet cloisonné jewels, swords, and a ring, buried with a 5th-century skeleton discovered in 1842 at Pouan-les-Vallées in France. It is now held in the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Troyes.
Why it matters
Early antiquarians claimed the grave belonged to Theodoric I, the Visigothic king killed fighting against Attila's Huns at the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains in 451. Modern historians consider this identification unlikely, but the find remains connected in local memory to the battlefield where Attila's invasion of Gaul was turned back, one of the most famous events of his reign.
Why it matters
Look closer
- Why might historians have been eager to connect this grave to a famous king like Theodoric?
- What kinds of objects survive from a 5th-century burial, and what do they suggest about the person buried?
- Why do modern historians doubt the original identification?
This artifact is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Attila the Hun on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.
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