Greytown museum skeleton a mystery

An outdoor area at Cobblestones Museum in Greytown. PHOTO/SUPPLIED

A human skeleton has been discovered at Cobblestones Museum in Greytown.

Museum volunteers uncovered a largely intact skeleton in storage at the old hospital late last week, with a doctor this week confirming the bones are human.

Cobblestones Trust chairman Graeme Gray said the unusual find had been made by volunteers who had been cataloguing items at the museum since the opening of the new building.

The bones had been tied together with string but the skull was missing.

The origins of the skeleton and how long it had been at the museum were still unclear, Mr Gray said.

"We are finding more and more items as we have these volunteers working through building by building. They are coming across all sorts of stuff."

Acting Sergeant Nick Atherley said volunteers had contacted police, who had taken the remains to Wairarapa Hospital.

"We don't have any concerns that it's anything suspicious but we've contacted our iwi liaison officer and taken it to the mortuary."

Staff at the hospital would try to identify the skeleton and, if possible, return it to the appropriate people. If it could not be identified, it was likely the skeleton would be buried.