Last week, scientists positively identified the bones of Nicolaus Copernicus, the astronomer credited with scientifically formulating the idea that the universe is heliocentric and prompting the 16th century scientific revolution. To be sure that the bones were actually those of Copernicus, the scientists compared DNA from the unmarked remains found in a grave beneath Frombork Cathedral with DNA collected from the pages of one of Copernicus' books and found them to be identical. Using computer modeling software, his face has been virtually reconstructed.
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Polish bishop asks archaeologists to find the unmarked grave of Nicolaus Copernicus under the floor of Frombork Cathedral. Archaeologists find a damaged burial including a jawless skull, and note that it's a male of the right age and with signature wounds visible on contemporary portraits of the…
Computer reconstruction of Copernicus from skull discovered in the cathedral in Frombork, Poland.
Researchers in Poland say they have solved a centuries-old mystery and identified the remains of astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus.
A comparison of DNA from a skeleton in Poland and strands of the…
Computerized reconstruction, via BBC
from Nature's The Great Beyond:
Copernicus corpse confirmed - November 21, 2008
A skull from Frombork cathedral in Poland has been identified as that of revolutionary astronomer Copernicus.
Marie Allen, of Uppsala University, says DNA from the skull is a…
I first became acquainted with the Romanovs (as historical figures, not the actual Romanovs) reading in middle school about Russian History. Later, someone turned me on to Massie's Nicholas and Alexandra, which is quite a well known popular historical account of the last Czar of Russia and his…