Bizarre Burial Contains Bones From Several People

Even stranger is that the people whose bones make up the skeleton lived thousands of years apart.

“Original field photograph displaying the individual in grave 26 in anatomical articulation lying on the right side with flexed legs (left). Colour was added to the bones that were sampled for aDNA analysis (right).” Image Source: The Study

Archaeologists have unearthed countless wondrous and fascinating things, many of which I’ve written about. Sometimes, archaeologists find the ruins of ancient cities or personal artifacts, while other times they find human remains. Usually, such discoveries reveal a little more of our species’ history and family tree, but every once in a while, archeologists unearth something unexplainable that raises more questions than answers.

Such is the case with today’s story. Decades ago, archaeologists discovered a curious burial in a Roman-era cemetery in Belgium that was unlike the others. Without the means to investigate further, the remains were nearly forgotten until recently.

Now, using modern technology, researchers analyzed several bones from the strange burial, but the findings make the situation even more unusual and raise questions that not even modern technology can answer. For one thing, the skeleton is not from a single individual, but several. Further, the people lived three millennia apart.

The Initial Find