A severed human head was found in a bag below the iconic Hollywood sign in the hills above Los Angeles on Tuesday, prompting a search in the area for an accompanying body, authorities said.

Two unidentified witnesses found the head in the Hollywood Hills near the Griffith Observatory, a popular hiking area. Homicide detectives were looking for further evidence in the area, including a search for a body, police said.

Witnesses in the area found the head in a bag and called police, Los Angeles Police Department spokeswoman Karen Rayner said. No further details were immediately available.

The Hollywood sign on Mount Lee above Los Angeles originally read Hollywoodland and was created to promote a housing development in 1923. The last few letters deteriorated in the late 1940s and the part that remained was restored in 1978.