Heading back in time Heading back in time at Palace at Palace

TWO of Stirling Castle’s former residents are getting a heads up on the opening of the refurbished Renaissance palace this weekend.

Renovation work at the palace led to the unearthing of 10 skeletons buried beneath a lost 12th-century royal chapel.

At least five of them, dating from medieval times, are now believed to have suffered violent deaths.

Two made international headlines when they were featured in a BBC documentary last year and 3D reconstructions of them - believed to be a knight and a high-born lady - are now going on public display for the first time, at the grand opening of the refurbished palace this weekend.

Radio carbon dates indicate that, as a group, the unearthed people probably died in a series of incidents between the 13th century and around 1450, perhaps in sieges, skirmishes or battles around Stirling during the Wars of Independence.

Richard Strachan, Historic Scotland’s Senior Archaeologist, said: “The skeletons were a remarkable find and provided an incredibly rare opportunity to learn more about life and death in medieval Scotland.

“The new research has brought some quite incredible results.

“It was unusual for people to be buried under the floor of a royal chapel and we suspect they must have been pretty important people who died during periods of emergency – perhaps during the many sieges which took place.

A team from Bradford University worked on the model of the lady’s face while the knight’s face was recreated by experts at Dundee University.

Professor Caroline Wilkinson said: “This 3D facial model depicts a strong muscular man with a healed wound across his forehead and rugged features.

“This reconstruction was produced using anatomical standards and the latest digital 3D technology, and allows us to come face to face with this medieval knight.”

And Dr Jo Buckberry, from Bradford, added: “What we discovered from this research is enormously exciting and has far-reaching implications for our understanding of medieval warfare.

“At least five of these people had their bones broken with blunt and heavy objects, such as clubs – very different from soldiers studied who died in open battle and were killed with swords or halberds.”

It is not certain where the deceased were from, or who they were fighting for, though tests so far are consistent with at least some being from the Stirling or Edinburgh area.

Celebrations, featuring dozens of costumed performers and other entertainment, to mark the culmination of the £12 million palace restoration project at Stirling Castle take place on Saturday and Sunday (June 4 and 5).