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| Richard III in art. Will he look like this? |
Speaking to the Leicester Mercury newspaper, Professor
Lin Foxhall, head of archaeology at the university, said: "We've provided
3D scans of all the bones, including the skull, to a specialist team, which
will build up a picture of how he used to look. It will be very interesting,
because of course there are portraits of him and if the images come back and
they're similar it's another piece of evidence which will strengthen the
identification process."
Another way that scientists will identify the skeleton
is to compare the DNA from the remains with that of London furniture maker
Michael Ibsen. Mr Ibsen is believed to be a relative of Richard III and his
genes are being tested against those of the skeleton. Results are expected to
be revealed early next year, again most likely to coincide with Channel 4
documentary.
Other tests include environmental sampling and
radiocarbon dating, which will all be used to help establish whether or not the
bones belong to the former monarch. Analysis of burial practices, as well as
tests to determine the person’s health, diet and living conditions will all be conducted
to build a rounded picture of the person found at Greyfriars.
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| Richard III's grave |
Like with any good forensic investigation, there
are many lines of inquiry to identify the remains. What we know from the
Richard III Press Conference is that it seems very likely we have found the
king and in January this will finally be confirmed. Many specialists are
involved with the Greyfriars remains and all the tests have to be done in a
specific order to be done properly.
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| Pharoah Tutankhamen's face was reconstructed by scientists |
by Matthew Sibson
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