28 August 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Hundreds of skeletons found on Welsh beach

Archaeologists found the burial site of women and children just below the surface of the sand dunes on Whitesands Bay near the city of St David’s in Wales.

In what is now a popular beach, archaeologists have found the remains of around 200 people believed to belong to a Christian community dating back to the sixth century.

Since the early 1920s, archaeologists have been focusing on the area near St David’s, and natural erosion, storms, and archaeological excavation have contributed to revealing burials.

Archaeologists discovered that every individual was buried with the head looking west and no valuables, as is customary in early Christian burial traditions, and that some were buried in cists, which were lined and capped with stone slabs.

Dyfed Archaeological Trust and the University of Sheffield are now racing against the clock to discover what more secrets the dunes may hold before they are lost. Following severe storms in 2013 and 2014, a rescue excavation was conducted, followed by two seasons of work in 2015 and 2016, during which 90 burial sites were located in total.

A skeleton has been uncovered by archaeologists working at St Patrick's Chapel in Pembrokeshire (Image: Nick Bolton)
A skeleton has been uncovered by archaeologists working at St Patrick’s Chapel in Pembrokeshire (Image: Nick Bolton)

The team has now returned to explore what else they can learn about the individuals who worshiped at the place in the past.

In 2004, the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority attempted to safeguard the Scheduled Ancient Monument by placing big boulders on the dunes to impede erosion. Stormy weather, however, drove the boulders away in 2014, exposed further burials.

Jenna Smith at Dyfed Archaeological Trust, which is leading the dig, said the preservation of the bones is “absolutely incredible” because they have been completely submerged in sand.

She told the BBC: “It’s really important that we do so because it gives that snapshot in time which we don’t normally get in Wales.

“The bone doesn’t normally exist and the main reason that we’re here is that we are here to stop the bones and the burials from eroding into the sea.”

The discovery was made at Whitesands Bay in Pembrokeshire (Image: Nick Bolton)
The discovery was made at Whitesands Bay in Pembrokeshire (Image: Nick Bolton)

The burials were of various ages, with a mix of males, women, and children, according to an analysis conducted by the University of Sheffield.

Some of the skeletons were found in cists, which are graves lined and capped with stone slabs that were widespread in western Britain in the early medieval period. Some of the infant burials were discovered to have an uncommon feature, with white quartz stones laid on top of the cists.

The Dyfed Archaeological Trust said there is “still a significant amount of evidence left to excavate,” including an “intriguing stone structure which pre-dates the burials”.

The dig is scheduled to end on July 16, after which the site will be backfilled, however, Dyfed Archaeological Trust hopes to unearth as much of the cemetery site as possible due to erosion concerns.

Related Articles

An Egyptian Tomb Decorated with Magic Snake Spells Discovered

9 November 2023

9 November 2023

During excavations at Abusir, between Giza and Saqqara, archaeologists at the Czech Institute of Egyptology (CIE) found an ancient tomb...

The Famous Cueva de Ardales cave in Spain was used by ancient humans for over 50,000 years

8 June 2022

8 June 2022

Cueva de Ardales cave in Málaga, Spain,  famed for the extensive prehistoric art on its walls was excavated for the...

The altar of Zeus Temple discovered in western Turkey

1 September 2023

1 September 2023

Archaeological excavations in the ancient city of Magnesia, located in the western province of Aydın’s Germencik district, have uncovered the...

Two mysterious stone balls were found buried in a tomb dating to 3500 BC in Orkney

2 September 2021

2 September 2021

In Orkney, archaeologists discovered two carved stone balls in a tomb dating from 3500 BC. Archaeologists are on-site at Tresness,...

Sicily: Archaeologists make striking discovery in Segesta

8 June 2021

8 June 2021

Archaeological excavations in the Segesta Archaeological Park, investigating a “monumental edifice” near the portico at the end of the old...

A princely tomb discovered in the infrastructure project of the A7 Ploieşti-Buzău highway in Romania

20 December 2022

20 December 2022

An impressive archaeological discovery took place on the Ploiești-Buzău section of the Moldova Highway. The excavations uncovered a princely tomb,...

Academics Uncover Ancient Roman Physicians Galen’s Pharmacy Legacy in İzmir

27 February 2024

27 February 2024

As a part of research on medicinal plants in Bergama, İzmir’s historic district where Galen (129 AD -200 AD) once...

Tombs of Queens of Commagene Detected

23 September 2021

23 September 2021

The graves built by Commagene King Mithritades II (36-21 BC) for his mother Isias, his sister Antiokhis, and Antiochis’s daughter...

A Unique Discovery in Europe: Ancient Stone Circles Cover 2,800-Year-Old Graves of Children in Norway

29 June 2024

29 June 2024

Archaeologists from the Museum of Cultural History in Oslo discovered an unknown burial site in a quarry near Fredrikstad, in...

1,800-year-old Roman remains discovered in valley of eastern Turkey

21 February 2022

21 February 2022

Roman remains dating back 1800 years have been found in a valley in eastern Turkey. Among the Roman ruins found...

Oldest Aboriginal pottery discovered in Far North Queensland

10 April 2024

10 April 2024

More than 2000 years ago, Aboriginal Australians were producing ceramics on a secluded island about 35 kilometers off the coast...

25 Qing Dynasty tombs found in China’s Hunan

25 May 2022

25 May 2022

25 graves dating from the Qing Dynasty (A.D. 1644–1912) have been uncovered in the Houbeishan tomb complex in southern China,...

In Egypt, archaeologists have discovered a 4,500-year-old Sun temple.

16 November 2021

16 November 2021

Archaeologists discovered an ancient Sun temple in the Egyptian desert that dates back 4,500 years. The remains were discovered under...

Drone photos reveal Venice of the Fertile Crescent

16 October 2022

16 October 2022

A drone survey of Lagash, a site located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, revealed that the 4,900-year-old settlement was...

Scientists unlock the ‘Cosmos’ on the Antikythera Mechanism

13 March 2021

13 March 2021

Scientists may have finally made a complete digital model of the 2000-year-old Cosmos panel of a mechanical device called the...