Olympic road construction uncovers mass grave

A 2,000-year-old mass grave containing the skulls of at least 45 people has been uncovered by workers digging a new road to a 2012 Olympic Venue.

The discovery was made by archaeologists carrying out a dig on the site of the new £87 million relief road to the sailing venue in Weymouth, Dorset according to the Telegraph.

It is thought that the victims were slaughtered by invading Romans in about 43AD. The 6m (20ft) wide plot has been found to contain 45 skulls as well as various pieces of skeleton.

Project manager for Oxford Archaeology, David Score said: "We have found a remarkable burial pit.

"We have counted 45 skulls so far, these are in one section of the pit, and several torsos and leg bones in separate sections of the pit.

"It is rare to find a burial site like this one. There are lots of different types of burial where skeletons may be aligned along a compass axis or in a crouched position, but to find something like this is just incredible.

"It's very early days, but so far, after a visit to the site by our head of burial services, the skulls appear to be predominately those of young men.

"At the moment we don't fully understand how or why the remains have come to be deposited in the pit but it seems highly likely that some kind of catastrophic event such as war, disease or execution has occurred."

Andy Ackerman, head of highways for Dorset County Council said: "It's standard practice for major schemes to ensure that archaeological investigations are fully undertaken and it is also written into the planning conditions for such projects."

Members of the public are being urged to stay away from the Olympic Highway, which is being built ahead of Weymouth and Portland hosting the sailing events at the 2012 games.

Once analysed, archaeological finds from the site will be go on show at a Dorset museum.