Four-year Bronze Age burial mound excavation on Isle of Man ends

Several of the cremated remains found were in burial urns

A four-year project to excavate a Bronze Age burial mount on the Isle of Man has drawn to a close.

The dig has unearthed the cremated remains of at least 10 people and the skeletal remains of another.

The Round Mounds project began with surveys in 2016 followed by four years of excavations, disrupted in 2020 and 2021 by the coronavirus pandemic.

Andy Johnson of Manx National Heritage, which part-funded the project, said the site had "delivered in spades".

Andy Johnson said it was an important project for the island

Among the items found during the dig was an elaborate 4,000-year-old jet necklace, discovered at the bottom of the mound along with the skeletal remains in 2019.

Several pottery urns containing the created remains, thought to have been added to the site over hundreds of years, were also uncovered.

The mound, on a hillside near Kirk Michael, is one of about 170 similar structures across the island.

Mr Johnson said the comprehensive excavation and analysis of this particular site would help shape the organisation's approach to similar mounds on land earmarked for development.

Chris Fowler and Rachel Crellin have led the project since 2016

The project has been led by Rachel Crellin, of the University of Leicester, alongside Chris Fowler of Newcastle University, who have been accompanied by about 70 students throughout the course of the annual four-week dig.

Dr Fowler said as well as the burials, the layers of material used to construct the mound contained fragments of pottery and flint tools, which could be "really important" in revealing more about the settlements during the period.

Several trenches were dug over a four-year period

Dr Crellin said the scientific analysis of the artefacts found and compiling of a final report on the project would take about a further three years to complete.

The pair were now also considering creating a children's book about the mound's "cool story" to open the project up to a wider audience, she added.