!["The 700-year-old skeleton was discovered alongside a magnificent headstone, carved with a Calvary cross, its handle forming a fleur de lys."](http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/image_content_width/hash/e4/50/1363286228_2357_knight.jpg?itok=9n4pq22D ""The 700-year-old skeleton was discovered alongside a magnificent headstone, carved with a Calvary cross, its handle forming a fleur de lys."")
A medieval knight was found when a parking lot was being dug up to make room for a new building for Edinburgh University. “This find has the potential to be one of the most significant and exciting archaeological discoveries in the city for many years, providing us with yet more clues as to what life was like in Medieval Edinburgh," said Councillor Richard Lewis, Culture convener, from the City of Edinburgh, in a press release by Headland Archeology on March 13, 2013.
The area where the parking lot, or car park as it is being called in Scotland, was being dug up was historically the site of a 17th century Royal High School, a 16th century Old High School, and a 13th century Blackfriars Monastery which was which was founded in 1230 by Alexander II (King of Scotland 1214‐49) and destroyed during the Protestant Reformation in 1558.
Until now, however, the exact location of the Blackfriars Monastery “was unknown” according to Headland Archeology’s press release.
After the grave of the medieval knight was found, archaeologists were called to the building site. The grave was marked with an elaborate sandstone slab showing the carvings of the Calvary cross and an ornate sword.
The elaborate grave stone might indicate that the skeleton of the found medieval knight might be the remains of a noble man.
So far, the gravestone of the medieval knight or nobleman has already been dated back to the 13th century.
An analysis of the knight’s skeleton and teeth will be carried out to determine where he was born, what he ate, where he had been living, and to find out what caused his death.
On March 14, 2013, The Scotland Times reported in its article “Noble bones found in Scottish car park” that,
“The 700-year-old skeleton was discovered alongside a magnificent headstone, carved with a Calvary cross, its handle forming a fleur de lys. The ornate design was enough to reveal that the knight was wealthy; the position of the grave, at the site of a Dominican monastery, confirmed that he was a man of some importance.”
And evidently, the medieval knight still is of some importance today; 700 years later.
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