Archaeologists of the University of Leicester discovered some bronze parts from an ancient chariot on a hill in the Midlands, the university said Tuesday.

University of Leicester said a team from the university's School of Archaeology and Ancient History unearthed some bronze remains from a Celtic chariot, which could date back to the second or third century BC, at Burrough Hill, a well-known Iron Age hillfort in Leicestershire.

It said a group of four students of the school first discovered a piece of bronze in the ground before uncovering a concentration of further parts nearby. After cleaning, the metalwork showed some decorated patterns clearly.

"Realizing that I was actually uncovering a hoard that was carefully placed there hundreds of years ago made it the find of a lifetime. Looking at the objects now they have been cleaned makes me even more proud, and I can't wait for them to go on display," said Nora Battermann, one of the students who found the pieces.

Archaeologists believe that the more than 2200-year-old chariot belonged to a high-status person, maybe a noble or warrior.

"This is the most remarkable discovery of material we made at Burrough Hill in the five years we worked on the site. This is a very rare discovery, and a strong sign of the prestige of the site ... I have been excavating for 25 years and I have never found one of these pieces - let alone a whole set. It is a once-in-a-career discovery," said Jeremy Taylor, lecturer of the school and also the co-director of the Burrough Hill field project.

Further analysis will be conducted for those parts before a temporary display in Leicestershire from Oct. 18 until Dec. 13, and the official public display will open in due course. Endit

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