During the dig, which has hopefully recovered Richard III’s remains, the archaeologists also found female remains. Obviously the find (potentially) of Richard overshadowed everything else, but at last there is also some information on the female remains.
Although these have not yet been investigated in as much detail, it has now been suggested that these could be those of Ellen Luenor. It is thought that she and her husband Gilbert founded the friary in the 13th century.
Her incomplete skeleton was found in a different part of the friary than the male remains. Archaeologists suggest that the skeleton may have been dug up by a gardener when the site was the garden of a mansion house in the 17th century and then reburied. The manager of the dig site said: “They were buried at a higher level than the church floor and the bones were not intact, which suggests that someone dug them up by accident and reburied them in a different spot, just not as deep.”
A more thorough investigation of the female skeleton will be undertaken, once the analysis of the male remains has been completed. They also announced that any identification of the former king’s body is at least two weeks away, with the results likely to be released in the new year, when Channel 4 will screen its documentary of the search.
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