Ammon News - You might think that tackling flat-packed furniture is a uniquely modern problem.

But now archaeologists have found the first Roman funerary bed in Britain - and it was 'flat-packed for the next life'.

Archaeologists from Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA) made this important discovery in a Roman cemetery near Holborn Viaduct in central London.

The nearly 2,000-year-old bed was found alongside five Roman oak coffins.

Heather Knight, Project Officer at MOLA: 'The levels of preservation we've encountered – and particularly uncovering such a vast array of wooden finds – has really blown us away.'

The bed is made from high-quality oak, with carved feet and joints that are fixed together with wooden pegs.

However, archaeologists believe that it was probably taken apart before being placed in the grave of an adult male in his late 20s or early 30s.

Other gravestones found across the Roman Empire show scenes of the dead sitting or reclining on couches, often eating as if they were alive.

This indicates that the bed may have been a 'grave good' intended to be used in the afterlife.

Daily Mail