Decapitated and mutilated bodies were discovered in a gruesome Viking-age burial pit.
Students have made the rare discovery of an ancient grave on the outskirts of Cambridge.
The pit contains the remains of at least 10 people who are thought to be either Vikings or Saxons, dating from around the ninth century AD.
Among the bodies, the students found a ‘giant’, standing at an estimated 6ft 5in tall – well over the average height of males at the time of around 5ft 6in.
However the towering man was found with a 3cm hole in his skull, suggesting an ancient surgical procedure had been carried out on him.
Other bodies in the pit suffered a similar grim fate, including a number of skulls without accompanying bodies.
Four complete skeletons were discovered, but some were found in positions suggesting they were tied up.
The dismembered remains had led experts to suggest the burial site may have been an ‘execution site’.
A burial pit in Cambridge contained the remains of at least 10 people, but some had been decapitated
A giant man was found in the pit, standing at 6ft 5in tall, with a huge hole in his head
Four complete skeletons were discovered in the ancient grave, however some may have been tied up
A group of Cambridge University students on a training dig have helped discover the burial pit
Another suggestion is that the bodies may have been young men thrown into the grave in the aftermath of a battle.
During the ninth century, the area was a ‘frontier zone’ in clashes between the Vikings and Saxons over territory before it was finally conquered by the Vikings in around 870 AD.
The ‘rare’ discovery was made by Cambridge University students in Wandlebury County Park on the outskirts of Cambridge, between the spring and summer months last year.
Dr Oscar Aldred of Cambridge Archaeological Unit, who led the excavation, said: ‘Those buried could have been recipients of corporal punishment, and that may be connected to Wandlebury as a sacred or well-known meeting place.
‘It may be that some of the disarticulated body parts had previously been displayed as trophies, and were then gathered up and interred with the executed or otherwise slaughtered individuals.
‘We don’t see much evidence for the deliberate chopping up of some of these body parts, so they may have been in a state of decomposition and literally falling apart when they went into the pit.’
The training dig was part of Cambridge University’s undergraduate degree in archaeology, in conjunction with Cambridge Archaeological Unit and local charity Cambridge Past, Present and Future, which owns Wandlebury.
Dr Aldred said Cambridgeshire was a ‘frontier zone’ where Saxons and Vikings ‘clashed over territory across many decades’, adding: ‘We suspect the pit may relate to these conflicts.’
Experts have suggested the site may have been the result of a mass execution
The ‘rare’ discovery was made between the spring and summer months last year
The find may date from around the ninth century AD when the area was a frontier in clashes between Vikings and Saxons over territory
Cambridge students pictured excavating one of the skulls at the burial site
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Third year Cambridge archaeology student Olivia Courtney, from Bath, said: ‘Before we uncovered the first remains, our best find was a 1960s Smarties lid.
‘I had never encountered human remains on a dig, and I was struck by how close yet distant these people felt.
‘We were separated by only a few years in age, but over a thousand years in time.’
Grace Grandfield, a Cambridge undergraduate from York who took part in the dig, said: ‘I would never have expected to find something like this on a student training dig.
‘It was a shocking contrast to the peaceful site of Wandlebury.’
Experts were shocked to discover the body of a ‘giant’ who had a hole in his head.
Dr Trish Biers of Cambridge University said: ‘The individual may have had a tumour that affected their pituitary gland and caused an excess of growth hormones.’
Historic England, which is supporting the excavation, has commissioned a new geophysical survey of the area that archaeologists hope will reveal more about the site surrounding the burial pit.
The discovery will feature in an episode of Digging For Britain, which is due to air on BBC Two on Wednesday.
It is the latest impressive discovery to be made in the UK, after a hall thought to belong to England’s last Anglo-Saxon King was found in Yorkshire.
Archaeologists discovered a large hall and a hoard of jewellery on land owned by Harold Godwinson.
The team, co-led by University of York lecturer Dr Jim Leary, also found evidence of a malthouse and a sunken tower, indicating the site could have held wealth and influence fit for royalty.
