Ammon News - A Syrian contractor made a historic discovery when clearing the rubble of a destroyed home, stumbling upon remains of an underground Byzantine tomb complex.

Believed to be more than 1,500 years old, the ruins were found in Maarat al-Numan in Idlib province, located on the route between the cities of Aleppo and Damascus.

Residents there have been rebuilding their communities after the collapse of Bashar al Assad's regime last December.

After the contractor found stone openings during a reconstruction project, locals contacted the authorities, who then dispatched a specialised team to inspect and secure the site.

Images of the complex show that a pit next to a damaged building leads down to the openings of two burial chambers, each containing six stone tombs, with the sign of the cross etched into the top of one stone column. Sky News