A pair of ancient skeletons found in Italy and nicknamed the Lovers of Modena were in fact two men.

The nickname was given to the skeletons, which date to around the fifth century AD, because they were buried holding hands in a cemetery near Modena in northern Italy.

Since their discovery in 2009, it was assumed that they were a man and a woman, perhaps a husband and wife, but the poor preservation of the bones meant that scientists could not be certain.

Now, their gender has been revealed using new techniques based on the protein of tooth enamel.

“We were able to extract proteins from the dental enamel of both individuals and to confidently classify them as males,” scientists from the University of Bologna said in the journal Scientific Reports.

But the exact relationship between the two men remains a mystery.

Researchers are convinced that they were intentionally buried hand-in-hand and suggest they may have been brothers, or soldiers who died together in battle.

The latter theory is supported by the fact that other skeletons found in the cemetery showed signs of trauma, “likely related to their violent death during war conflicts,” the team said.

“The two ‘Lovers’ could have been war comrades or friends, who died together during a skirmish and were buried within the same grave.