Gary Vines, an archaeologist with heritage consultant Biosis, said it would be a shame if archaeological digs were prevented.

Experts have confirmed that thousands of bodies lie buried beneath the market in the Old Melbourne Cemetery, at a rate of about one every 2.15 square metres.

Although most of what used to be the Old Melbourne Cemetery is now covered by an asphalt car park, it is believed an archaeological treasure-trove lies beneath, much of it undisturbed.

More than 6500 bodies remain buried beneath the market and have the potential to yield lost information about the lives of Melburnians during the early years of European settlement.

Mr Vines said the laboratory study of the bones could show what people ate, the diseases they suffered from, their life expectancy, what care was lavished on the dying and, through distinct wear and tear on their bodies, their professions.

"It's a sensitive area but we know so much about our past from the remains of our ancestors that it would be a shame to just prohibit that sort of archaeology," he said.

Archaeology and cultural heritage expert, Professor Richard Mackay, has warned that the realigning of Franklin Street - through a market area once home to Presbyterian and Episcopalian graves - would need to be undertaken with great care.

"Human remains are likely to be more than a metre deep, but may be immediately below the current ground level, as a result of twentieth-century levelling," he said.

Professor Mackay's report is part of Melbourne City Council's submission to a planning panel considering the $250 million redevelopment of the market, which will see much of the old cemetery land turned into a new park.

To date it has been the council's position that the bodies, buried up until 1917, will not be touched – or that exhumation will be last resort.

"Our project team has always pledged to minimise disturbance, and in the event that we encounter remains, we will endeavour to manage the situation as respectfully as possible," a council spokesman said.

It is thought up to 10,000 people were buried at the Old Melbourne Cemetery. Over the years some bodies have been moved, including during a mass exhumation of 886 in 1922, when bodies were moved to the Fawkner Crematorium and Memorial Park.

The cemetery was divided into religious and cultural areas, including Jewish and Aboriginal people to the north, and Roman Catholics in the centre.

It is possible the new road to be built through the southern end of the market will provide an opportunity for scientific assessment of the remains, as Professor Mackay said it would be possible to "mitigate" any damage inflicted by the construction by a thorough archaeological investigation.

In other areas, it's likely the graves will remain undisturbed.

The council is working with the Victorian government to prepare legislation that will govern disturbance and exhumation of market remains.

The planning panel on the Queen Victoria Market Precinct Renewal begins on Tuesday, to be chaired by Ballarat's former director of planning and infrastructure, Trevor McCullough.