‘Exceptional’ 1,800-year-old sarcophagus unearthed in France held woman of ‘special status’

Archaeologists excavating an ancient necropolis in northeastern France have discovered an unlooted, unopened Roman-era sarcophagus dating to the second century A.D. The tomb likely holds the remains of an elite woman, archaeologists said.

The rough limestone sarcophagus was sealed shut with eight iron clasps, and its contents were hidden beneath a thick stone lid weighing 1,700 pounds (770 kilograms), according to a translated statement from the French National Institute of Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP). To glimpse what lay inside, archaeologists X-rayed the sarcophagus and then inserted an endoscopic camera, which revealed a human skeleton and various grave goods.