they were leaf cutter bee larvae. They lay an egg indise and then the larvae develop inside. they go into a phase where they turn into a 'cell soup' and then re organise themselves into the adult bee. perhaps they had died due to the weather. dont know what they are supposed to smell like :o)

It was a shame that you destroyed them, they would have done no harm if left to develop, I keep mason bees and I store their cells all winter in the garage, I then put them out around April/May time to begin all over again, Its facinating.

Many thanks for your replies.Did'nt think about keeping them too see what happened when they developed as they smelt awful,just thought it best to get rid of them.
Thanks again
Carol

the fact they smelt bad suggests they had died and gone off, so dont feel guilty about disposing of them. :o)