Archaeologists report the discovery of dozens of human skeletons in a ditch in Slovakia, believed to date back about 7,000 years to the Stone Age. Multiple outlets describe the remains as headless, with the missing heads suggesting deliberate body handling before burial. Researchers are focusing on why the individuals’ heads are not present in the graves. The find is unusual to scholars, who say they do not yet have an explanation for the apparent practice of removing heads prior to interment. Investigators are continuing to analyze the burial context and the skeletal evidence to determine whether the pattern results from human activity, ritual practices, or other causes. The discovery is being treated as significant because it may offer new insight into prehistoric mortuary behavior in the region, even as key questions remain unanswered about how and why the remains were deposited in a ditch and what the headless arrangement indicates. Authorities and researchers are expected to publish further findings as additional examination is completed.