Ancient royal skeletons found with bizarre distorted skulls that make them look like ALIENS
It is believed the skulls were elongated by tribal elders on purpose
MYSTIFIED archaeologists have discovered freakish skeletons with unusually long heads that make them look like aliens
They found a number of the outlandish skulls in excavations near the foot of Mount Elbrus in south-western Russia's Baksan Gorge.
A number of theories for the mystery were discussed by scientists from the Russian Academy of Science.
They recently confirmed that one of the skulls belonged to a 15-year-old girl and believe the shape of her skull might have been deliberately warped when she was still a child.
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Elders of the tribe likely changed her cranium while the bones of her skull were flexible and still growing - similar to the ancient Chinese practice of foot-binding.
They think it may have been a way of distinguishing aristocracy among the ancient Scythian tribe which lived in the area more than 2,000 years ago.
The skulls were found some time ago but the archaeologists decided against rushing to come to any conclusions about their discovery.
However, experts from the Russian Geographical Society, in the region of Kabardino-Balkaria, have come up with a different interpretation.
They say the Baksan Gorge was a sacred site in ancient times and that the people with elongated skulls were believed to be capable of seeing the future.
And ufologists have come up with an even more out-of-this-world explanation - they think the tribe might have seen aliens and started stretching their skulls to look more like them.
Archaeologists are planning another expedition for the summer of 2017 when they hope to find more clues to help them solve the mystery.
The Scythians were a large group of nomads who inhabited large areas of the central Eurasian steppes from about 9 BC until about 1 BC.