STONEHENGE BOY ‘WAS FROM THE MED’
Baku, September 28 (AZERTAC). Chemical tests on teeth from an ancient burial near Stonehenge indicate that the person in the grave grew up around the Mediterranean Sea, according to BBC News.
The bones belong to a teenager who died 3,550 years ago and was buried with a distinctive amber necklace.
The conclusions come from analysis of different forms of the elements oxygen and strontium in his tooth enamel.
Analysis on a previous skeleton found near Stonehenge showed that that person was also a migrant to the area.
The findings will be discussed at a science symposium in London to mark the 175th anniversary of the British Geological Survey (BGS).
The “Boy with the Amber Necklace”, as he is known to archaeologists, was found in 2005, about 5km south-east of Stonehenge on Boscombe Down.
The remains of the teenager were discovered next to a Bronze Age burial mound, during roadworks for military housing.
“He`s around 14 or 15 years old and he`s buried with this beautiful necklace,” said Professor Jane Evans, head of archaeological science for the BGS.
“The position of his burial, the fact he`s near Stonehenge, and the necklace all suggest he`s of significant status.”
Dr Andrew Fitzpatrick, of Wessex Archaeology, backed this interpretation: “Amber necklaces are not common finds,” he told BBC News.
“Most archaeologists would say that when you find burials like this... people who can get these rare and exotic materials are people of some importance.”
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