Specialist scanning equipment at Salisbury Hospital's spinal unit is being used to shed light on early Bronze Age burial discoveries.

The items unearthed on a Dartmoor burial site in Devon could prove to be one of the most important archaeological finds of the last 100 years.

The excavation, co-ordinated by Dartmoor National Park Authority, discovered the collection of early Bronze Age remains in a burial cist - a stone chest containing the ashes and belongings of a dead person -on Whitehorse Hill last year.

Now, under the expert eyes of Wiltshire Council's conservation service the items are being X-rayed to see what secrets they may be hiding.

Senior conservator Helen Williams took the objects to the spinal unit at Salisbury.

A preliminary X-ray revealed the contents of a woven bag found on the site, which will now also be examined.

Ms Williams said: "The level of preservation of the objects within the cist burial is excellent with a number of different materials present.

"We have a real opportunity to research these finds and potentially discover more about the individual buried there."

The excavation in August 2011 revealed that cremated human bone and burnt textile was placed within an animal hide or with fur on top.

Archaeologists also found a delicate woven bag or basket with fine stitching still visible and containing preserved shale disc beads, amber spherical beads and a circular textile band.

Although around 200 burial cists are known on Dartmoor, they are rarely found with their original contents.

Jane Marchand, senior archaeologist for Dartmoor National Park Authority and the Whitehorse Hill project manager, said: "This is a most unusual and fascinating glimpse into what an early Bronze Age grave goods assemblage on Dartmoor might have looked like as it was buried, including the personal possessions of people living on the moor around 4,000 years ago."

Once the X-ray work is complete, further analysis will be made of the peat surrounding the cist.

Archaeologists believe this will give an insight into evidence of the vegetation and climate at the time of the burial.