The pollen was from plants that produce flowers in late spring and early summer.

The team’s interpretation was carefully hedged.

They noted that the evidence was consistent with deliberately placed flowers.

They also acknowledged that burrowing animal activity remained a possible explanation, and that a natural organic-rich sediment accumulation could not be entirely ruled out.

What they argued was that the totality of the evidence — the body position, the burial cluster, the repeated use of the location, the pollen concentrations — was more consistent with intentional burial with possible floral accompaniment than with purely accidental deposition.

Other researchers challenged the interpretation.