Sometimes exciting discoveries are found which make international headlines. According to The Guardian published today, the bones of Richard III have been found beneath the Leicester parking lot in England. The Guardian reports, “Not just the identity of the man in the car park with the twisted spine, but the appalling last moments and humiliating treatment of the naked body of Richard III in the hours after his death have been revealed at an extraordinary press conference at Leicester University.”
Richard Buckley, lead archaeologist proclaimed that the team had found the last Plantagenet king. He was bent by scoliosis of the spine. His body was twisted further to fit into a hastily dug hole in Grey Friars church; the hole was too small to hold his body.
This major finding is exciting for archeologists and forensic psychologists alike. It is of monumental historical importance. The Guardian goes on to say that the Richard III Society have been supporting this project for years despite lack of funding and incredulity from the world.
According to CBC News “Osteologist Jo Appleby said the 10 injuries to the body were inflicted by weapons like swords, daggers and halberds and were consistent with accounts of Richard being struck down in battle — his helmet knocked from his head — before his body was stripped naked and flung over the back of a horse in disgrace. She said some scars, including a knife wound to the buttock, bore the hallmarks of "humiliation injuries" inflicted after death. The remains also displayed signs of scoliosis, which is a form of spinal curvature, consistent with contemporary accounts of Richard's appearance.”
CBC News states that, “University of Leicester researchers were able to make the discovery thanks to a DNA sample from Michael Ibsen, who is a 17th great-grand-nephew of Richard's older sister — Anne of York. Ibsen, who was born in London, Ont., but now lives in London, England, said he was "stunned" to discover he was related to the king.”
British archeologists have helped solve several historical mysteries around the world. The British found a prehistoric complex complete with tombs of the dead not far from Stonehenge dating back six thousand years. This find was reported in the National Geographic.
Among these finds was a 1,300-year-old fragment of gold plate which is as part of the largest Anglo-Saxon hoard ever found.
Richard III’s skeleton may not be the only monarch remains to be found. British archeologists are searching from the remains of the Queen of Sheba. According to The Guardian, “A British excavation has struck archaeological gold with a discovery that may solve the mystery of where the Queen of Sheba of biblical legend derived her fabled treasures.”
“Louise Schofield, an archaeologist and former British Museum curator, who headed the excavation on the high Gheralta plateau in northern Ethiopia, said: "One of the things I've always loved about archaeology is the way it can tie up with legends and myths. The fact that we might have the Queen of Sheba's mines is extraordinary."
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