Anthropologists in Mexico say the remains¹ of 167 bodies found in a cave in the southern state of Chiapas were part of an ancient burial ground.

墨西哥人类学家称，南部恰帕斯州发现167具尸骨的某山洞乃一处古代的坟地。

The National Anthropology² Institute said tests showed the remains dated back to the eighth century.

Scientists hope pottery³（陶器） found in the cave will help them determine the community those buried belonged to.

It was first feared the bodies could belong to victims of the decades-long civil war in neighbouring Guatemala.

Farmers had found the bodies in a cave on the Nuevo Ojo de Agua ranch⁴, some 20km (11 miles) from the Guatemalan border, and alerted the authorities.

Initial tests suggested the bodies were at least 50 years old, leading some activists⁵ in Guatemala to speculate they may have belonged to victims of the 1960-1996 civil conflict.

But forensic⁶（法院的） experts have since said the skulls⁷ showed signs of a deformation⁸ typical of native communities dating back 1,000 years and more.

The Maya people who thrived in the region for nearly 2,000 years used planks⁹ to flatten¹⁰ and elongate¹¹ the skulls of their children.

Anthropologists continue to examine the remains in an effort to determine the sex, age and ethnic¹² make-up of the bodies.