A skeleton more than 200 year-old has been unearthed on Governor's Island in St. George's during an archaeological dig, The Royal Gazette can reveal.

The skeleton is the second to be found buried in Smith's Fort on the island.

For the past four years, under the auspices of the National Parks Commission, director of the Bermuda Maritime Museum, Dr. Edward Harris and Professor Norman Barka of the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia have, with the help of students and volunteers, been excavating Paget Fort and Smith's Fort.

The archeological research is part of a long-term study of the first forts built in Bermuda after settlement of the island in 1612.

The latest skeleton, a male estimated to be in his early 20s, was discovered in one of the fort's "Merlons'' which is a large rampart part of the wall, between which cannons would be fired.

The fort was originally built in 1613, and the foundations of two towers built in Bermuda stone were discovered two years ago.

In June 1999, another skeleton was found on the same site, only yards from the current skeleton and both appear to have been labourers working on rebuilding Smith's Fort in the 1790s.

The fort was modified at that time by St. George's first mayor, Major Andrew Durnford who was also a Royal Engineer.

The Royal Engineers were an army corps responsible for constructing forts and bridges.

Maj. Durnford was responsible for modernising Bermuda's forts following the American revolution, and destroyed all but the footings of the original fort before rebuilding it.

Modifications to the fort were deemed necessary at the time to fortify Bermuda as one of the British strongholds in the `new world'.

"This second burial was more elaborate than the first one we discovered'' said professor Barka.

He continued: "The individual just discovered was buried in a nightshirt and possibly a shroud, as pins for the sheet and buttons for the shirt have been found with the skeleton.

"In addition, a coin or medallion was found in the area of the heart and was perhaps in a pocket as it had fragments of cloth adhering to it.'' The coin was a major find for the team and will help them to date when the man was buried, but the cloth that has corroded to it prevented them from reading the date.

It is difficult to age or sex a skeleton without full examination in a laboratory, but the archaeologists believe that the two skeletons were those of young men.

The latest skeleton was remarkably well-preserved and the man had an almost perfect set of teeth and no visible signs of trauma or injury.

The two men had been buried in coffins and although many nails were found the wood had completely rotted away.

"It was possible that they were victims of yellow fever which claimed many lives in Bermuda over several centuries,'' suggested Dr. Harris.

The skeletons will eventually be sent overseas for analysis, but there were no obvious signs on either of any injury.

They will then be kept in the care of the Bermuda Maritime Museum.

Smith's Fort is one of the fortifications at the east end that are now on the UNESCO World Heritage list and the work by Professor Barka and Harris was instrumental in having the forts added to the list along with the town of St.

George.

Dr. Harris said: "It is a requirement of being a World Heritage Site that Smith's fort and the other forts now on the list are managed properly.

"This means that archeological investigations are necessary to ascertain the historical nature and development of such sites.

"Their conservation and in some cases restoration, is also required by UNESCO.'' Smith's fort is remarkable in that it has survived within a later version of the fort built by Maj. Durnford which was about three-quarters completed when the two men died.

Instead of digging a grave, they were placed within the fort and then buried as the inner parts of the wall were filled with rubble and soil.

The early forts of Bermuda, unlike other English works in the America's were built in stone and so have survived .

On the US mainland forts were built of timber which has long rotted away.

Bermuda has the first masonry forts built by the British in the new world and now has the oldest surviving such buildings.

These forts are of international importance for the history of English settlement in the Western Hemisphere and are of outstanding local value as the first buildings erected of Bermuda stone.

"We are indebted to Professor Barka and the College of William and Mary for their long-standing support and preservation of Bermuda's military defence heritage over the last decade,'' said Dr. Harris.

He added: "The discoveries at Smith's fort over the last three years have added greatly to our understanding of one of Bermuda's first forts, thought to have been lost completely until revealed in these excavations.'' And the archaeologists have made several other discoveries including a cannon ball which was found in ancient landfill.

Recent rains slowed the archaeologists' progress as they had to keep the exposed skeleton covered to protect it from the elements but it should be an exciting digging season for both teachers and students this summer.

Police were called out to examine the skeleton as a matter of procedure, but quickly saw that the skeleton had been there some time and will not launch an investigation.