COUNTY LONDONDERRY, NORTHERN IRELAND—BBC News reports that well-preserved human remains recovered from Bellaghy peatland last fall have been carbon dated to between 2,000 and 2,500 years ago. Detective Inspector Nikki Deehan of the Police Service of Northern Ireland said the remains consist of leg and arm bones, finger bones, fingernails, toenails, the breastbone, skin, and a possible kidney. “A post mortem was carried out by a certified forensic anthropologist and determined that the individual was possibly a male aged between 13 and 17 years old at the time of death,” she added. The individual’s head is missing, however, and it is not clear if it was removed before or after death. Fossilized tree remains found near the body indicate that it had been buried in an area that was wooded at the time. To read about remains recovered from Ireland's Cashel Bog, go to "Oldest Bog Body," one of ARCHAEOLOGY's Top 10 Discoveries of 2013.
