THE SKELETON of a baby boy who could have died up to 300 years ago was discovered under the floorboards of a house, an inquest has heard.
Referred to as Baby Auckland in official documents, the remains were unearthed by contractors while renovating a building on Fore Bondgate in Bishop Auckland in July 2024.
The body of a baby boy was discovered under the floorboards of a house in Bishop Auckland, an inquest has heard.Credit: NNP
The baby, known as Baby Auckland, was wrapped in a 1910 copy of The Umpire newspaper.Credit: NNP
The baby was full-term, but it is not clear whether he was a stillborn, County Durham and Darlington senior coroner Jeremy Chipperfield heard at the inquest in Crook.
found the baby was a boy but post-mortem examinations revealed nothing about his death.
However, contractors did find a curious brown twine looped three times around the baby’s neck.
Despite being swaddled in a copy of The Umpire newspaper from 1910 and located in a Victorian-era building, carbon dating suggests the remains date much further back.
The first phase involved determining if the child predated the “nuclear age”, which began in 1945 following the first test of the in New Mexico.
Radiation levels confirmed he was older than that, with later tests suggesting the “most likely date range” for the child’s fleeting life was somewhere between 1726 to 1812.
A local undertaker will work with Durham Police and Durham County Council to perform a funeral later this month.
Baby Auckland will be buried in Bishop Auckland cemetery.
A full inquest will resume on 18 May.
Contractors discovered the child with twine-like string wrapped three times around the baby’s neck.Credit: PA
Carbon dating suggests the baby was born somewhere between the 1726 and 1812.Credit: PA 
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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