ARCHAEOLOGICAL experts in Notts today revealed that 50 beheaded young men found in a burial pit last year were probably executed Vikings.

Experts at the British Geological Survey in Keyworth have analysed teeth samples from ten of the decapitated warriors discovered on Ridgeway Hill in Dorset last June.

They used isotope data from teeth samples to pinpoint that the bodies date back to between 910 and 1030 AD and originate from Scandinavia.

The analysis was led by Dr Jane Evans and Carolyn Chenery, of the NERC Isotope Geosciences Laboratory, part of the British Geological Survey.

Dr Evans said: "The isotope data we obtained from the burial pit teeth strongly indicate that the men executed on the Ridgeway originated from a variety of places within the Scandinavian countries.

"These results are fantastic, this is the best example we have ever seen of a group of individuals that clearly have their origins outside Britain."

The burial site was uncovered during work for a new relief road.