King Richard III's Face Revealed After Skeleton Found

The face of England's king Richard III is revealed for the first time in more than 500 years following a reconstruction of his skeleton found underneath a car park.

Published

4 months ago

Categories

Science, Arts & Society

Topics

History, Europe

People

Michael Ibsen, Richard Iii, Philippa Langley

Places

London, United Kingdom, Leicester

Transcript

SHOTLIST: London, 5 Feb, 2013 SOURCE: AFPTV -VAR reconstruction of the head of Richard III unveiled Philippa Langley, originator of 'Looking for Richard' project, Richard III Society SOUNDBITE 1: Philippa Langley (woman), originator of 'Looking for Richard' project, Richard III Society [English, 33 sec]: "We know that Richard died aged 32 -- he was a young man -- yet the portraiture that we have of him that was done in the Tudor era, always seems to bring out this guy who looks like he was 50 or something. So I think to see Richard as a 32-year-old, as a man with youth... he seems to be on the point of smiling and we know from the historical records that he actually had a good sense of humour." -VAR reconstruction of the head of Richard III -Richard III model with Philippa Langley -VAR media -Philippa Langley and Dr Phil Stone, chair of Richard III Society posing with model -VAR descendant of Richard III Michael Ibsen posing next to model SOUNDBITE 2: Philippa Langley (woman), originator of 'Looking for Richard' project, Richard III Society [English, 12 sec]: "He led armies and he fought many skirmishes and I think you can see that strength of character and that determination -- but just the fact that he's a young man -- and you can totally get that from this." -VAR portrait of Richard III --------------------------- AFP TEXT STORY: King Richard III's face revealed for first time in 500 years LONDON, Feb 05, 2013 (AFP) - The face of England's king Richard III was revealed for the first time in more than 500 years on Tuesday following a reconstruction of his skeleton found underneath a carpark. A three-dimensional plastic model has been made from the skull of the king, who was killed in 1485 after just two years on the throne but lived on as one of history's worst villains in the eponymous play by William Shakespeare. Researchers hope the discovery of his remains under a carpark in the central English city of Leicester, complete with the twisted spine of folklore, will lead to a rehabilitation of his reputation. And many believe the image of his face, until now only depicted in paintings, will be key to this. "It's an interesting face, younger and fuller than we have been used to seeing, less careworn, and with the hint of a smile," said Phil Stone, chairman of the Richard III Society. "When I first saw it, I thought there is enough of the portraits about it for it to be king Richard but not enough to suggest they have been copied. I Think people will like it. He's a man who lived." The reconstruction work was led by Caroline Wilkinson, professor of craniofacial identification at the University of Dundee in Scotland, and paid for by the Richard III Society. A team at the University of Leicester announced on Monday that DNA tests, carbon dating and examination of bones had proved beyond reasonable doubt that the skeleton found underneath a municipal carpark last year was that of Richard. The discovery ends a 500-year-old mystery about what happened to the king's body, after it was buried by Franciscan friars in an unmarked grave following his defeat at the hands of the future king Henry VII at the Battle of Bosworth.