The remains were found on Tuesday night by an officer from Catania’s finance police force and his alpine rescue dog, Halma, as they were conducting a training exercise.
It is believed that the remains are those of man who died between the 1970s and the 1990s.
Police stated that the man was at least 50 at the time of his death, was 1.7 metres tall and had “congenital malformations to his nose and mouth”.
The man had been wearing long dark trousers, a woollen jumper, a striped shirt and a black tie.
A woollen hat and a dark green raincoat were found next to the remains, along with some lira coins, an Omega watch, a comb and size 41 Pivetta shoes.
The cave on Europe’s tallest active volcano is difficult to access and police are unsure whether the man entered it voluntarily or by force.
The initial investigation has revealed that the man did not die a violent death.
Police have been inundated with calls from the public since the remains have been found.
One such call was from the daughter of 49-year-old investigative journalist Mauro De Mauro, who disappeared from Palermo in September, 1970.
Franca De Mauro contacted police after reading that the remains had deformities around the nose and mouth areas, as her father had sustained injuries to those same areas during WWII.
Police are currently investigating several leads, including other missing person cases and ties to organised crime.
