Greenkeepers find 2,000-year-old skull

Greenkeepers renovating a bunker on a Scottish golf course have found a human skull that is believed to be 2,000 years old.

The find, on the fourth hole at the nine-hole Musselburgh’s Old Links Golf Course, officially the oldest golf course in the world, has been sent to Dundee University’s forensic anthropology department for examination.

Initially, police were called as staff at the club feared the skull may have been buried within the last 100 years.

However, tests quickly ruled that out and archaeology officers at East Lothian Council, which owns the golf club, have said the skull belonged to a girl in her late teens or early 20s and is approximately 2,000 years old.

A council spokesman said: “It was a very populated area during that time, and periodically bones from similar periods are uncovered in that area.

“The size of the skull and the teeth suggest that it was probably a young female in her late teens or early 20s.”

Archaeologists intend to explore the immediate area to see if there are any more remains nearby, but no major excavation is planned.

The spokesman continued: “A limited dig will be carried out to see if there are other bones relating to the skull in close proximity. The chances are these bones will have been disturbed considerably over the past 2,000 years.

“Winter maintenance work will resume and the bunker repair work can continue without disturbing digging in the area.”

It is not the first time Musselburgh Links has been associated with old bones.

The course’s second hole is named The Graves because it is believed to be a burial ground for soldiers who died at the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh between the armies of Scotland and England in 1547.