Archaeologists from the Police Service of Northern Ireland and Queen’s University, Belfast, have uncovered the remains of a teenaged boy thought to have died between 2000 and 2500 years ago from a peat bog near the village of Bellaghy in County Londonderry, according to a press release issued on 25 January 2024. The body was first discovered in October 2023, with the Police Service becoming involved because it was unclear at that time how old the remains were, leading to suspicions that the site might be the scene of a (recent) crime. However, the remains were found to be much older in origin when radiocarbon dated at a specialist unit at the university.
Initial investigations at the site uncovered a tibia and fibula and a humerus, ulna, and radius, from lower the left leg and right arm, with more bones subsequently being uncovered. This is extremely unusual for an ancient body preserved in a bog, where the acidic nature of the groundwater tends to dissolve the bones, while tanning the skin to make a form of natural leather, something with led to the suspicion the body was recent in origin.
Further excavations revealed a lower left arm, finger bones, fingernails, part of the left femur and the breastbone. Forensic examination of these remains led to the conclusion that the body was that of a male, who was between 13 and 17 years of age at the time of his death. The body was found within a cluster of fossilised trees, leading the archaeologists to speculate that he was either buried in a stand of trees, or possibly drowned in a flood and was washed to the location, becoming entangled in the trees.
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