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NEWS |
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Dateline
- June 9, 2008
Confirmation
of Australian soldiers buried at Fromelles |
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Minister for Defence Science and Personnel, the Hon. Warren Snowdon,
today confirmed that an Australian Rising Sun collar badge had
been discovered during the limited excavation of a First World
War burial site in Fromelles, France. “Our archaeology team
in Fromelles has unearthed a Rising Sun badge in Pit 4, which
proves that the remains of Australian soldiers are buried at this
important site,” Minister Snowdon said. “This is a momentous
discovery and makes this field at Pheasant Wood on the other side
of the world, of national significance for all Australians.”
The limited excavation was commissioned with three purposes: to
confirm the presence or otherwise of human remains at the site;
to make an assessment on the condition of human remains, and to
estimate the number of human remains. “The team has already
confirmed the presence of remains and will continue to excavate
the site to establish the condition and estimate the number of
human remains at the site,” Minister Snowdon said.
At this stage, the human remains uncovered are of skeletal nature
and are reported to be in good condition. There is very little
surviving fabric and many of the pieces of equipment had been
removed prior to burial. “Any future excavation of the site
or testing of the human remains will require agreement from the
British and French Governments as well as the Commonwealth War
Graves Commission. We continue to liaise closely with each of
these authorities and thank them for their ongoing support. Once
we receive the reports and assessments from the Glasgow University
Archaeological Research Division (GUARD) who are conducting the
excavation, we will be better placed to discuss the next step
in this process.”
The limited excavation is scheduled to finish on Friday 13 June
2008 when the site will be returned to its original condition
and the human remains left in position. An executive summary of
the Report from the GUARD team is anticipated shortly afterwards
with the full technical archaeological report to follow in due
course. |
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