Remains of two people and an ancient animal have been discovered during construction work in the North Kazakhstan Region. The unusual find was made near the village of Pribrezhnoe, not far from Petropavlovsk, according to infohub.kz.
Workers came across the bones while building a bridge. An excavator was working a sand quarry when the remains were noticed in the ground. The finds were brought to the surface, after which police officers were called to the site.
Law enforcement has launched an investigation. According to preliminary data, no signs of a crime have been found. The period to which the human remains belong has not yet been established.
One of the bones found was examined by Anatoly Pleshakov, a candidate of historical sciences and archaeologist. Preliminary analysis suggests it belongs to a woolly rhinoceros that inhabited this area until approximately the 12th millennium BC.
"The woolly rhinoceros is what we call mammoth fauna, from the Paleolithic period, the Ice Age. If it turns out that at least one of these skulls dates to the same time, it would be a super-sensation. If I'm already saying that finds of mammoth fauna are a sensation, then this would be a super-sensation. Because one of the skulls is heavily faceted, so it's quite interesting," said archaeologist Anatoly Pleshakov.
Now scientists must determine the age of the human remains. Specialists plan to conduct a detailed study of the bones found and the sand quarry itself.