Archaeologists on Tuesday found skeletal remains of over more than 240 people, including about 100 children from beneath a former department store in Pembrokeshire in Wales, UK among remnants of a medieval priory, according to reports.
In a “hugely significant” discovery under a former Ocky White store that offers a “window into medieval Haverfordwest”, archaeologists believe they have unearthed remains from St Saviour’s Priory, founded by a Dominican order of monks in about 1256, according to a BBC report. With about half of the remains being those of children, experts have noted that it is a reflection of the high mortality rates in the past.
Some of the skeletons also showed violent injuries. According to Dyfed Archaeological Trust’s Site supervisor Andrew Shobbrook, some of the remains were found with head injuries, consistent with having been in battle, and wounds that could have been caused by arrows or musket balls.
Theories behind the likely cause of the injuries have led archaeologists to consider that the bodies are likely victims an attack led by Owain Glyndŵr, who was the last native Welsh person to hold the title Prince of Wales. “We know that the town was besieged in 1405 by Owain Glyndŵr and they could be victims of that conflict,” Shobbrook said.
Shobbrook also noted that the priory was a “significant complex of buildings” with dormitories, scriptoriums i.e. rooms devoted to writing and manuscripts as well as stables and a hospital.
“It’s quite a prestigious place to be buried. You have a range of people, from the wealthy to general townsfolk,” he said. Experts also believe that the graveyard could have been used until the early 18th Century.
All the bones will be analysed by a specialist before being reburied on a nearby consecrated ground. Meanwhile, the remains and other finds, including tiles, are being stored at a nearby disused shop after being cleaned and dried.
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