The mummified remains were said to have been unearthed by a team of archaeologists at the proposed site for the Singleton Stone quarry, located in Lake County, Indiana in the US.
It is understood that the archaeologists were enlisted by a land surveying contractor to scour the site for artefacts as part of the quarry’s development application process.
The local coroner reportedly confirmed the remains were human but said the age had not yet been determined.
Media reports cited Lake County sheriff John Buncich as commenting, “They’re saying it could be 500 to 2000 years old. They could distinguish a head and a torso. It could be a Native American burial ground.”
After law enforcement ascertained that the remains were not part of a crime scene, it was said that they were referred to state archaeologists from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources.
Although in this instance, the remains were found prior to the quarry’s establishment, old quarries have also been known to offer ideal conditions for preservation, and rock extraction can often lead to fossil discoveries that provide a greater understanding of natural history.
For example, earlier this year, a prehistoric reptile fossil found at a UK quarry was identified as a new species, and an ancient Egyptian quarry revealed relief carvings depicting how the people of that time transported their quarried stone.
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