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Denpasar. Archeologists in Bali say they have unearthed ancient human remains that date back to about 500 B.C. at a village in the island’s southeast.

Ayu Kusumawati, a researcher from the Denpasar Archeological Society, said on Sunday that two sarcophagi had been discovered by a bricklayer in a quarry near Keramas village in Gianyar.

She said the group opened one of the stone caskets on Sunday. It contained a human skeleton with all the bones intact. The second sarcophagus is set to be opened on Monday.

Ayu said both of the coffins had identical markings on the outside, which culminated in a tortoise-shaped relief at the top. A pitcher was also found inside the opened sarcophagus.

The findings, she said, indicated that the remains were about 2,500 years old. “Both the pitcher and the sarcophagi show signs of advanced stonework and ironwork,” she said.

Burials in a sarcophagi were exclusively the domain of the nobility, Ayu added, while the tortoise motifs represented the channel through which the spirits of those inside could journey to the afterlife.

Meanwhile, the archeological society’s chairman, Wayan Suantika, said the latest findings brought to 16 the total number of sarcophagi unearthed at Keramas over the past four years.

In May, four burial plots were found, although each had already been opened and their contents emptied, he said.

Suantika said that his organization was working with the Prehistoric Artifacts Preservation Society and the local administration to establish a museum in the area to house the discovered sarcophagi.

“Obviously it won’t be easy, but once we get this museum in place, it will be a huge drawing card for tourists,” he said.