Skeleton under UK car park of Richard III

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Remains found underneath a car park in Leicester, which have been declared to be the long lost remains of England's King Richard

British archaeologists on Monday confirmed that the skeleton they had dug up from under a car park in Leicester last year is that of Richard III, the last Plantagenet king of England.

The identity of the skeleton was confirmed with radiocarbon dating, radiological evidence, DNA and bone analysis and archaeological results, the University of Leicester teams led by archaeologist Richard Buckley said at a press conference on Monday.
“It is the academic conclusion of the University of Leicester that the individual exhumed at Greyfriars in August 2012 is indeed King Richard III, the last Plantagenet king of England,” Mr Buckley said.
King Richard III was defeated and killed in 1485 at the Battle of Bosworth and his body was brought to Leicester where he was buried in the church of the Franciscan monks, known as the Greyfriars. A tomb was also erected for the defeated king within the Greyfriars’ church. However, the grave and the church were both lost and the archaeologists had launched a search from the car park of the Leicester city council to search for the grave and discovered the skeleton.
The focus of the tests to confirm the identity of the skeleton was mostly on the DNA testing and the team managed to get two matches with matrilineal DNA and the tests on four descendants, through Edward III’s son John of Gaunt, on the male side are still being carried out.
The team managed to extract DNA from the skeleton and announced that it matches with that of two of Richard III’s matrilineal line descendants through his sister Anne of York — Canadian furniture maker Michael Ibsen, the 17th great grand-nephew of Richard III, and a second person who is keen to remain anonymous.
The genealogist team also found documentary evidence that the daughters and the mothers match the matrilineal descent lines between the two descendants on the sister’s side, Professor Kevin Schürer revealed.
“The DNA sequence obtained from the Greyfriars skeletal remains was compared with the two maternal line relatives of Richard III. We were very excited to find that there is a DNA match between the maternal DNA from the family of Richard III and the skeletal remains we found at the Greyfriars dig,” geneticist Dr Turi King confirmed.
The skeleton, which has interesting characteristics like the curvature of the spine and a large number of injuries to the head, was subjected to radiocarbon dating by two institutions separately and they dated the skeleton between 1455 and 1540. The dates are consistent with King Richard III’s death in 1485.
Radiocarbon dating of the skeleton by the Universities of Oxford and Glasgow has provided additional confirmation of the skeleton being that of Richard III as it also revealed that the person had a high protein diet — including significant amounts of seafood — meaning he was likely to be of high status.
Richard III was killed by one of two fatal injuries to the skull, one possibly from a sword and one possibly from a halberd, osteoarchaeologist Dr Jo Appleby revealed.
The skeleton was of an adult male but with an unusually slender, feminine build, consistent with descriptions of Richard III. The man was aged in his late 20s to late 30s, fitting with Richard III’s age at his death. He was 32.
“The skeleton has a number of unusual features: its slender build, the scoliosis and the battle-related trauma. All of these are highly consistent with the information that we have about Richard III in life and about the circumstances of his death. Taken as a whole, the skeletal evidence provides a highly convincing case for identification as Richard III,” she said.
Dr Appleby’s team identified 10 wounds on the skeleton, eight on the skull, which occurred at the time of death or shortly after. Some of these were humiliation injuries inflicted after his death, she said.
The skeleton was around 5 feet 8 inches tall, but suffered from scoliosis since puberty, meaning King Richard III would have stood significantly shorter and his right shoulder may have been higher than the left. His grave was hastily dug, was not big enough and there was no shroud or coffin.
The king’s body will be re-interred in the Leicester Cathedral, Leicester mayor Sir Peter Soulsby announced on Monday. It is expected to take place early next year and the remains have now been formally entrusted to the cathedral.
There will be a temporary exhibition on the search and discovery of the Plantagenet king’s skeleton and a permanent visitors’ centre will be opened next year, telling the story of Richard’s life and death.