By Lars Niven

HUMAN BONES found on the foreshore at Culross are those of a child who died around the end of the 17th century, it has been confirmed.

Tests carried out by a specialist at Dundee University established the remains were those of a child aged between nine and 12 years-old.

It is thought the youngster died of the plague and was hurriedly buried away from the Fife coastal village to prevent any further spread of the disease.

Fife Council archaeologist Douglas Speirs said such skeletal finds were relatively common around the region’s coast.

“It is certainly not the first and it won’t be the last,” he told The Courier.

The bones were found more than 100 yards from the shore of the Firth of Forth by a man who was out looking for worms earlier this year.

As well as the skull a number of other bones were missing, but the remains were still clearly human.

Police were called in and what was left of the skeleton was removed and taken to Dundee University.

Mr Speirs said, “They are almost certainly from the 17th century and belonged to someone who died at a relatively young age, almost certainly as a result of disease.

“The most likely explanation is the plague.

“In the 16th and 17th centuries every 15 to 25 years there would be an outbreak of the plague and people would die.

“Finds like this are quite a common occurrence.

“We have had them turn up in St Andrews, Kinghorn, many of the coastal communities.”

He added that plague victims would often be buried away from communities and the local graveyard.

The main graveyard in Culross is near the church and old abbey at the top of the hill.

“There is not an awful lot of ground out there, so they chose to bury them in the inter-tidal area,” he said.

“All that will happen now once we get round to it later this year is that we will re-inter the remains in a Christian cemetery.”