Arthur's Stone: Archaeologists dig up tomb linked to King Arthur

Archaeologists are digging up a 5,000-year-old monument from the New Stone Age.

The monument called Arthur's Stone, has been linked to the legend of King Arthur.

Experts are excited to dig at this prehistoric tomb to find out what really happened there and how big it really is.

But who is King Arthur and what are the scientists hoping to find? Read on to learn more.

The dig

Archaeologists from The University of Manchester are working with English Heritage who look after Arthur's Stone.

Found in Herefordshire, England, the tomb has never been dug up before, but English Heritage say that similar monuments in the same area have been found to contain skeleton remains and pottery.

The stone is from the Neolithic era, which means New Stone Age.

Today, only a large capstone of the inner chamber remains, which is held up by several upright stones.

The team are excited by what could be discovered and so visitors can go and see the monument being dug up.

Why is the excavation important?

Professor Julian Thomas, University of Manchester, told Newsround: "Arthur's Stone is one of the most impressive and scenic monuments in the care of English Heritage, and also a site that it of great importance to local communities.

"Yet it is very poorly understood. There has never been a modern excavation on the protected part of the site, and it's relationship to other [monuments] of the Neolithic period (4000-2500 BC) is unclear."

Professor Thomas hopes this dig will help researchers to understand the structure of the monument better and how it was constructed.

King Arthur

Could this be King Arthur's tomb stone?

Many prehistoric monuments in England and Wales are linked to King Arthur.

But Professor Thomas told Newsround: "In the strict sense, Arthur's Stone has no real connection with King Arthur, as it was constructed four thousand years before the time when Arthur is supposed to have lived."

Historical records can't confirm the link the between King Arthur and this tomb, but legend has it that at this site he fought a giant who left the impression of his elbows on one of the stones as he fell.

While historians haven't been unable to confirm King Arthur was a real person, his legend has inspired amazing stories and works of literature and art.