Archaeologists find 4,500 skeletons at 8th-century burial ground in north east Spain

A MASS grave in northeast Spain could shed light  could shed light on the eighth-century Muslim conquest of the Iberian Peninsula.

Workman in Tauste, near Zaragoza unearthed the ancient Islamic necropolis, which is said to contain more than 4,500 skeletons. 

Archaeologists say the 400 tombs across the five-acre site are likely to date back from the 8th century.

By 711, Arab forces had invaded Spain after crossing the Strait of Gibraltar and conquered most of the Iberian peninsula in just three years. 

The remained in power for the next seven centuries until 1492, when the area was totally reconquered by the Christian kingdoms.

The discovery of the graves in Tauste is key because it is one of the few pieces of evidence that Muslims lived in the area. 

The human remains, which were only discovered in recent weeks, are to be exhumed by the end of the year.

The findings will undergo DNA analysis to determine the origins of the population and provide a deeper understanding of the spread of Islam in Spain.