Eight thousand-year-old skeletal remains believed to be those of a pre-historic human have been discovered from the Gua Bewah Cave in the Kenyir Lake area here.

The Star Online quoted the deputy director of the Institute of the Malay World and Civilisation Prof Nik Hasan Shuhaimi Nik Abdul Rahman, as saying that the remains found at a depth of 65 to 70cm could be between 8,000 and 11,000 years old.

A white cobra was seen guarding the burial ground when the archaeologists were excavating the site in November last year. However the cobra was said to have disappeared since then.

“When excavation work started, the snake emerged but it did not disturb our team,” assistant director of Terengganu Museums historical department Rashid Hamat said.

The find was the second in the Kenyir Lake area, the first one being in the Batu Tok Bidan Cave in 1975.

DNA samples from the remains had been sent to the United States for analysis and results are expected by next month.

Pieces of pottery believed to date back to the Neolithic Age (4000BC to 2200BC, or between 6000 to 4000 years ago) were also found from the caves.

The state government would carry on with excavation to find other historical artefacts.