5,500-year-old cup discovered in Hebrides loch by former Royal Navy diver

A 5,500-year-old cup has been discovered by a former Royal Navy diver in the mud of a loch in the Outer Hebrides.

Archaeologists are said to be "very excited" over the find which could provide clues to the lives of the mysterious early islanders.

The cup was found on the Isle of Lewis on Friday by Chris Murray.

Mr Murray described it as "a beautiful example" of the Neolithic age and had been the first person to drink from it in thousands of years.

Mr Murray has also previously discovered similar bowls around artificial stone built islands, known as crannogs, in the Outer Hebrides which have led to a "startling" re-writing of history.

Crannogs date back to more than 1000 years older than Egypt's pyramids and before Stonehenge.

Of the latest find Mr Murray from Stornoway said: "It is the cup of our ancestors, a very ancient early Neolithic bowl or drinking vessel around 5,500 years old.

"I had an idea there might be some items around the crannog on the loch. It was only about four feet down and I saw this tiny fragment sticking about a quarter of an inch out of the mud.

"So I dug away and after 20 minutes out came this beautiful example of the period... To think it is older than Stonehenge, Callanish and the pyramids is just fantastic.

"I have been in touch with archaeologists from Southampton and Reading universities who are very excited about it.”

Mr Murray also recovered 40 shards of pottery from the loch.

Archaeologists in Scotland have made "astounding discoveries" in the islands' lochs in recent years.

Mr Murray has previously scoured Loch Arnish, Loch Langabhat and Loch Borgastail on Lewis and made a number of finds.

"It shows that people were building these islands long before the pyramids and Stonehenge. It really is startling what we are finding out.

"These man made islands were clearly very important to early Hebrideans. Some of the pottery is now even called Hebridean Ware. Some of the bowls were scallop shaped and even the rims were decorated.

"The archaeologists don't know why they were throwing these pots into the loch nearly 6000 years ago - was it a sacrifice to water gods? I just decided to dive on them out of curiosity and I couldn't believe my eyes - on some lochs it was full of pottery. It was incredible - a real archaeological treasure trove."

The search was first sparked in 2011, when Mr Murray recovered a set of remarkably preserved Neolithic treasures submerged around a crannog.