MOSCOW, June 7. Scientists have scanned an ancient Roman burial at the Yorkshire Museum and created a 3D model of it, writes Phys.org.
Usually, one deceased was placed in the coffin. However, there are several people in the one chosen for the study: two adults and a baby. They died at the same time.
During their burial, a rare ritual was carried out — the bodies, dressed in clothes and shoes and placed in a coffin, were poured with liquid plaster. The remains and fabric decayed over time, but the frozen material retained their outlines. And that is what allowed scientists to create a detailed 3D model.
Scanning revealed the smallest details of the original burial. For example, scientists have seen ribbons used to wrap a burial shroud around an adult's head, as well as strips of cloth wrapped around a child.
The scan results, according to archaeologist Lucy Crichton, are incredible.
«They show the tragedy that occurred in York 1600 years ago,» — says the scientist.
Archaeologists still do not know why the bodies were filled with plaster. Probably, the ritual was used for the burial of people of high status. Similar burials have been found in Europe and North Africa. In York and its environs, 45 such graves were found.
It was previously reported that archaeologists have found 8,000-year-old drawings of «desert kites».