ANCIENT human bones have been discovered in the heart of St John’s, Worcester.

Six skeletons, four of which were still intact, were found by archaeologists working on the Sainsbury’s supermarket site.

The land, off Swanpool Walk, was once an Iron Age enclosure and is believed to be one of the oldest settlements in St John’s.

These remains, which are now undergoing tests, date back about 1,800 years to the late Roman era.

Tom Vaughan, project manager of the archaeology team, said: “Not only can we determine the sex of the skeleton by studying the shape of the pelvis and skull but with the help of bone specialists we could be able to tell if they went through any periods of famine or disease.

“There have been a few Iron Age traces in Worcester but this could be one of the earliest. To the best of my knowledge this is the earliest example of a settlement in St John’s.”

Tests and examinations will not only reveal the age and sex of those who were buried on site but will also help show us their quality of life and perhaps how they died.

During the Iron Age, before the Roman occupation of England, the site was probably a farmstead overlooking flood plains that are now Worcester city.

Archaeologists believe it developed into a bustling settlement on a busy trade route as pottery from across the Roman Empire has been found, including a well preserved bronze brooch in the shape of a trumpet from the late first century AD.

Commenting on the discovery of human remains Gary Mudge, Sainsbury’s project manager, said: “This is a very exciting find and we are pleased to have been able to offer the archaeologists the chance to thoroughly investigate this site.

“Additional works have now been carried out to preserve the settlement under the development site.”