Leg Bones from The Urn in Westminster Abbey
19th August 2026 by | Uncategorized
Bones from the Urn here,as possible York prince’s remains
Thank you to everyone who commented on my post yesterday about the possible extraction of DNA from the remains believed to be those of the York princes.
I will reply individually, but to address the concerns raised: these are the possible bones of the Princes in the Tower, photographed during the 1933 examination.
Very few people will have seen these photographs. There is a great deal of information circulating through YouTube videos, social-media posts and interviews, some of it repeated by historians who may not have revisited the original evidence.
As the photographs demonstrate, the remains are not simply a few tiny fragments or a handful of dust. They include substantial portions of leg and arm bones, parts of two skulls and a number of teeth.
Previous handling and the sensitivity of PCR are legitimate considerations, but they do not make meaningful testing impossible. Modern ancient-DNA laboratories use strict decontamination procedures, take samples from protected material within bones or teeth, employ control samples and assess modern contamination. Any animal bones present can also be identified and separated; their presence would not automatically invalidate the analysis.
The photographs cannot guarantee that recoverable DNA survives—that can only be established through scientific examination—but they clearly demonstrate that sufficient skeletal material exists from which carefully selected, minimally invasive samples could potentially be taken.
The remains were reinterred and sealed following the 1933 examination, greatly limiting subsequent handling.
Contamination is therefore a scientific issue to be assessed and controlled by qualified specialists. It is not a sound reason to refuse an examination before anyone has even attempted one.
Thank you for reading my posts do connect with me.
Gemma
Author & British Historian
Member of the Norfolk Archaeological Trust
www.murderinthetower.london
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