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Archaeologists have uncovered a " bog body " in the U.K. that is between 2,000 and 2,500 years erstwhile .
The find was made after the police were alarm about the discovery of human bones in peatland near Bellaghy , a village in the central part of Northern Ireland , accord to a argument by thePolice Service of Northern Ireland .
While authorities recovered most of the skeleton, its skull remains missing.
" On initial examination , we could n’t be sure if the clay were ancient or the result of a more late last , " Nikki Deehan , a tec examiner with the Police Service , said in the instruction .
" Therefore , we go on to turn up the eubstance with full forensic considerations in a raw and professional manner , " Deehan say . " This approaching also ensures that anyDNAevidence could be secured for any potential criminal investigation . finally this was n’t the case in this example . "
link : Scotland ’s ' bodies in the bog ' traveled one C of miles to die in a toilet
alternatively , authorities learn that they ’d found a " bog body , " human remains that are fantastically well - preserved thanks to being in places that contain low levels of oxygen with fuddled and spongy filth . Forensic anthropologists mold that the skeleton , whose ivory were dispel across the peatland and were just reassembled , was that of a teenage boy who died sometime between the ages of 13 and 17 .
While most of his bones were reclaim , his skull stay missing and research worker are unsure if it was differentiate from his organic structure before or after his death .
More than 1,000 bog body , date stamp from the Stone Age to mod time , have been found in Europe over the centuries . While some bog bodies , like the well - preservedTollund Manfrom Denmark , are the remains of sacrifice victims , others were likely the burials of deviants or execute criminals , or even the remains of accidental deaths , such as drownings , accord to a 2023 study in the journalAntiquity . It ’s unclear how the adolescent from Bellaghy receive his end , however .
— 5,000 - year - old ' peat bog body ' base in Denmark may be a human forfeit victim
— Oldest Scottish tartan ever found was continue in a peat bog for over 400 years
— Human ' bog ivory ' find at Stone Age campsite in Germany
Due to the excellent conservation of the peat bog body , investigator were capable to recover minute of skin , fingernail , toenails and " possibly a kidney , " according to the statement .
" The well - preserved nature of the physical structure meantradiocarbon datingcould be used to ascertain the prison term of death , " Deehan articulate . " The radiocarbon dates have placed the clock time of expiry between 2,000 [ and ] 2,500 old age ago , approximately 500 B.C. This is the first time radiocarbon geological dating has been used on a bog body in Northern Ireland , and the only [ bog body ] to still be , make this a rightfully unique archaeological discovery for Northern Ireland . "
