R3 Soc's press release 27/12/12

Hi Everyone

I hope you all had a super Christmas for those who celebrate & an
enjoyable Christmastide break for those who don't.

I've printed out below the R3 Society's latest press release ( rather
long!) which contains some exciting news on the funding of the facial
reconstruction of our Greyfriars Warrior!

cheers

Jac (Branches/Groups Liaison Officer)

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RICHARD III SOCIETY
Patron HRH The Duke of Gloucester KG GCVO
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 27 December 2012
REVEALING THE FACE OF THE
GREYFRIARS SKELETON
" Richard III Society announces funding of the facial reconstruction
A facial reconstruction is currently in progress aimed at revealing what
may be the features of King Richard III.
In August the search for King Richard's grave, led by the University of
Leicester in association with Leicester City Council and the Richard III
Society, excited world attention. In September a male skeleton was
unearthed at the Greyfriars site in Leicester.
Although the identity of the skeleton is not confirmed, the Richard III
Society has commissioned a facial
reconstruction, based on a CT scan taken by the University of Leicester,
to be carried out by a leading expert in facial anthropology.
The resulting reconstruction is expected to feature in a Channel 4
programme early in 2013, which will document the life of King Richard
and the search for his grave. Following transmission the Society will
make the reconstruction available to the media.
No portraits of Richard III survive from his lifetime, nor any detailed
physical descriptions apart from comments on his slim build and 'quite
slender limbs'. He was certainly smaller than his brother, King Edward
IV, who was well over 6 feet and corpulent in later life.
The best known of the earliest surviving portraits of Richard III are
those from the Royal Collection and the Society of Antiquaries.
Dendrochronology dates them both from the second decade of the sixteenth
century; they were probably based on lost originals painted during the
king's lifetime. In the early 1970s the Royal Collection portrait was
x-rayed to reveal that
at a later date the right shoulder had been made to look higher than the
left. Other features had also been altered, in particular the right eye,
nose and mouth in order to portray a more stern and determined
expression consistent with the image of the Tudor and Shakespearian
inspired myth of the deformed villain'. The second portrait, owned
by the Society of Antiquaries, was cleaned and conserved in 2007 and it
was found that the mouth had been similarly altered but the restored
painting shows a more genial expression.
Perhaps the most popular image of King Richard III is the one in the
National Portrait Gallery. It was the inspiration for Josephine Tey's
novel 'The Daughter of Time', where it inspired her fictional detective
to investigate the mystery of the Princes in the Tower. It was probably
copied from a copy of a lost original and it dates from over a century
after his death and may not be entirely accurate.
Richard III Society chairman, Dr Phil Stone, has commented For
centuries the true face and character of Richard III have been hidden
behind propaganda and spin. The Richard III Society has worked hard for
nearly ninety years to promote a more positive view of the king, and if
the Greyfriars skeleton proves to be him, we are close to seeing what we
hope will be his true likeness. We are delighted to provide the
financial support for the reconstruction; the revealing of the face will
potentially be both an historic and poignant occasion for all who have
an interest in this much misunderstood king.'
Philippa Langley, Originator of the search for the King, added,
It's taken nearly four years to get to this position in the Looking
For Richard project. To be at the point of seeing what could be the face
of the last warrior King of England is an incredibly exciting prospect.
I cannot thank the Richard III Society enough for funding, without
hesitation, what could be a truly breath-taking step in the search for
the real Richard III.
Meanwhile, scientists at the University of Leicester continue their
rigorous forensic tests on the fallen warrior found at the Greyfriars
site. The location of the grave, together with physical signs of
scoliosis and battle wounds, raises serious hopes that the search for
King Richard has been successful. However the University caution that it
is still too early to confirm the skeleton's identity; the results of
their investigations are expected early in the New Year.
A positive identification in scientific terms may of course never be
forthcoming, but whoever the skeleton belongs to this commission by the
Richard III Society will take us closer to seeing its facial features.
This face may well prove to be that of a king whose likeness has for so
long been misrepresented and distorted.

Founder:
S Saxon Barton
RICHARD III SOCIETY
Patron HRH The Duke of Gloucester KG GCVO
The Richard III Society is proud of its partnership with the University
of Leicester and Leicester City Council through the Looking for
Richard' project.



The reconstruction is expected to feature in a Channel 4 programme early
in 2013, which will document the life of King
Richard and the search for his grave. Following transmission the Society
will make the reconstruction available to the media.
About the Richard III Society
With a worldwide membership and local branches the Society is actively
engaged in original research through its own initiatives and through
collaboration with other institutions bodies and scholars. Through the
Richard III and Yorkist History Trust, a charitable body established by
the Society, we publish important academic works and make research
grants
The Society publishes an annual journal, The Ricardian, with original
articles on fifteenth century history and a quarterly members'
magazine the Ricardian Bulletin.
Members of the Richard III Society are available for media interview on
any topic concerning the life and times of Richard III, the Leicester
dig or any related matter.

Richard III Society Press Office
Peter Secchi Wendy Moorhen
+44 7780 866225 +44 7525 002135
peter@... wendy.moorhen@...
www.richardiii.net
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