During a recent motorway construction project in the UK, motorway workers discovered an ancient Roman cemetery with one of the tombs filled with a strange substance.
The UK's state-owned transport agency, the National Highways Agency, announced the news last week. The unusual coffin was discovered along the A47 road connecting the West Midlands cities of Birmingham and Suffolk.
The coffin is made of stone, hand-carved and "has remained untouched since its burial in Roman times more than 1,500 years ago," according to officials. Twenty-three other graves were found nearby, possibly indicating a family or community cemetery.
The discovery was part of a "small Roman roadside cemetery" that was unearthed when highway workers were upgrading the highway.
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Construction workers in the UK recently stumbled upon an ancient Roman cemetery, officials said. (National Highways (UK))
"Part of the A47 between Wansford and Sutton near Peterborough follows an old Roman road," National Highways said.
Authorities called the coffin, which weighed about 1,600 pounds and was 6.5 feet long, a "rare find."
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"Sarcophagi are not very common," the statement explained. "Only around 50 have been found around Roman Britain."
Archaeologists found that part of the reason the coffins were so heavy was because they were filled with a substance called white gypsum, a mineral used to make plaster. Experts place the coffin between AD 43 and 410, but have not determined the exact year it was made or why it contained plaster.
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"This may be the coffin of a high-ranking person in the local community," the National Highways Agency said.
A coffin contains white plaster, used to make plaster. (National Highways (UK))
"We don't know why the body was wrapped in plaster. It could also indicate that a wealthy man was buried."
The press release noted that archaeologists "carefully" began removing the bones from the plaster, and some fragments "bear the imprint of the cloth in which the bodies were buried."
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Interestingly, the plaster also takes on the shape of the body itself. Experts have discovered other strange items in the surrounding graves, including what may be a young woman's dowry.
"The grave of a young woman contained a collection of valuables, all placed at the feet of the body," the group said. "This may have been a dowry for a young woman to accompany her into the afterlife.
"The tomb also contained glass and ceramic drinking vessels, possibly for a final graveside toast or to mark an anniversary."
Depicts ancient Romans in England around AD 77 (iStock)
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Ancient Roman finds are not uncommon in Britain.
Last fall, a 2,000-year-old road was discovered in London shortly after the Roman invasion of Britain in AD 43.
Fox News Digital's Ashlyn Messier contributed to this report.