From the BBC: Roman skeleton find in farm field.
A Roman skeleton dating back 2,000 years has been unearthed after it was spotted by a member of the public in a farmer’s field in North Yorkshire.
Archaeologists have dug up a 6ft lead coffin containing the well-preserved remains of a Romano-British adult. (…)
Archaeologists will now use the skeleton to build up a picture of what life was like for the Romans 2,000 years ago.
Historical experts said that Aldborough was an important Roman settlement for the Brigantes – the largest tribe in Roman Britain.
Ian Panter, principal conservator with the York Archaeological Trust, said the coffin was found inside a stone chamber and the remains were of someone who lived between the second and fourth centuries. [continue]
It looks as though the legs were flexed. Aren’t bodies usually laid out straight? Or was he/she too big for the coffin?
The comment was that this was a rare find. I would think that the bodies of Romano-Britains would be fairly common. Perhaps the rarity is finding one in a lead lined coffin in a stone chamber.
And I would think that the diet and the life and time of 2nd-4th century Roman Britons would be fairly well documented by now.
Obviously, I am mis-informed.