At the click of a mouse, you can explore the resting place of King Richard III.
The Leicester University Archaeological Services has created this interactive model using the online 3D content sharing platform Sketchfab. It was constructed using photographs of the grave and photogrammetry techniques. The release of this interactive model ties in with the first anniversary of Richard III's reburial last year.
Richard III held the throne of England from 1483 until 1485, when he was killed at the Battle Of Bosworth Field by forces under the future king, Henry VII. Archeologists from the University of Leicester found the former king buried under a scruffy Leicester City council car park in 2012. The exact site of his burial is thought to be near the original altar of Greyfriars church, which was disbanded and eventually destroyed under Henry VIII’s dissolution of the monasteries.
By February 2013, the team of researchers at Leicester University had confirmed that the humble grave was indeed that of the former monarch through extensive DNA analysis and carbon dating. They performed further studies on the remains, including the reconstruction of his face, deciphering his lifestyle and diet from his bones, and a study of his curved spine caused by scoliosis.
“Photographs and drawings of the grave, whilst dramatic, are only two-dimensional and do not always best show nuances in spatial relationships that a three-dimensional model can,” said Mathew Morris, the archeologist who first discovered the remains.
He added, “Photogrammetry provides a fantastic analytical tool that allows us to examine the grave from angles that would have been physically difficult or impossible to achieve during the excavation, and gives us the ability to continue to examine the king’s grave long after the excavation has finished.”
Give the interactive model a whirl right here:
by Archaeological Services (ULAS)
on Sketchfab
