Graveyard of GIANTS lost for 5,000 years uncovered revealing ‘tall and powerful’ skeletons

GIANTS have found an ancient graveyard lost for 5,000 years containing the skeletons of “unusually tall and powerful” men.

Scientists uncovered the amazing grave site in a dig near Jinan City in eastern China.

Skeletons discovered in the graves would have been giant compared to the people of ancient China.

The men were found in large tombs – making scientists believe they would have held high status within the society.

Experts believe their hulking size is down to their “rich and plentiful” diet which changed their physiques.

The men are not unusually tall by modern day western standards – standing at 6ft 3in – but would have towered over their contemporaries.

Archaeologists are excavating the ruins of 104 houses, 205 graves and 20 sacrificial pits in the village.

Fang Hui, head of Shandong University’s school of history and culture, said: “Already agricultural at that time, people had diverse and rich food resources and thus their physique changed.”

The discoveries are from the Longshan Culture, a late Neolithic civilisation in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River.

The men’s impressive height is even tall compared to modern China – which has an average height of 5ft 8in.

“Further study and excavation of the site is of great value to our understanding of the origin of culture in east China,” said Zhou Xiaobo, deputy head of Shandong provincial bureau of cultural heritage.

Colourful pottery and jade items have also been found in the dig, scientists said.

Another giant skeleton was uncovered in Iran earlier this year along with a treasure haul.