Skeletons thought to have been Roman gladiators are to go on show in York. The 1,800-year-old human remains were exhumed in the city over the past decade and will be displayed in an empty shop throughout the summer.
The exhibition will feature the skeletons and objects which were unearthed alongside them.
Kurt Hunter-Mann, a field officer at York Archaeological Trust, said the exhibition features six of the 80 skeletons they unearthed on Driffield Terrace in York.
"People will be able to see all the background to the excavations we carried out and what they can tell us about Roman life and death in York," he said.
Bite mark
The theory the men might have been gladiators is a popular one but Mr Hunter-Mann admitted they were still not certain.
The most persuasive argument for the gladiator theory is a large carnivore bite mark, made by a lion, tiger or bear, an injury which Mr Hunter-Mann said was "unique".
The skeletons also showed evidence they had experienced a great deal of brutality during their lives.
Other theories archaeologists are examining include suggestions the site might have been a cemetery for specialist soldiers or a place of execution.
Sarah Maltby, director of attractions at York Archaeological Trust, said: "I hope they are gladiators because it is such a great story and leads us on to other questions, such as where the arena they fought in might have been."
She added: "We want everyone to really enjoy this exhibition, to learn something and to go way and think about it and contribute their own ideas to the debate about who these men might have been."
The exhibition opens at 10 Coppergate York, from 30 July.
Source: BBC News Website [July 28, 2011]