Professor Sue Black revealing skeleton secrets at Stirling Castle
The star of BBC Two series History Cold Case will next week share the secrets of medieval skeletons discovered at Stirling Castle.
Professor Sue Black.
Professor Sue Black, the director of the Centre for Anatomy and Human Identification at Dundee University, will be appearing alongside leading archaeologist Gordon Ewart and the pair will discuss the skeletons found when Mr Ewart and his team were excavating a lost royal chapel at the castle.
Professor Black will explain how the latest scientific techniques were used to discover more about the skeletons — the sort of people they belonged to, the lives they lived and the brutal deaths they encountered.
Two of them — a knight and a woman — attracted international attention when they were featured in the television series. The episode in question showed how Professor Black and her colleagues analysed the skeletons before revealing that both had suffered severe wounds from medieval weapons and may have died during the Wars of Independence.
Professor Black said, "History Cold Case attracted an enormous amount of interest, so I'm really looking forward to the talk at Stirling Castle, where the skeletons were discovered."
A facial reconstruction of the knight, and controversy over whether he might have been brought up in England, Scotland or France attracted headlines in India, Africa, and North and South America.
Mr Ewart, of Kirkdale Archaeology, will talk about the work he has done over many years to explore the past of the castle and its royal palace. Burials in a location of this kind were unusual and suggest extreme circumstances, such as a siege or plague which made it dangerous to leave the castle.
It is likely that only people of high status would be buried in such a prestigious place, according to Mr Ewart.
"Stirling Castle is one of the most remarkable places in Scotland," he said. "It was at the heart of the kingdom's affairs for centuries, and since the 1970s I have been involved in a series of archaeological projects to discover more about its past. It will be a pleasure to talk about the work we have done, and the insights which archaeology has given us into the castle, the skeletons, and more recently, the royal palace."
- The Secrets of the Skeletons talks take place in Stirling Castle's Great Hall on Wednesday, September 22. Tickets cost £15 for adults and £12 for concessions, or £10 and £8 for Historic Scotland members. They are available by calling Tracey Macintosh on 01786 431312 or by visiting Stirling Castle gift shop. Teas, coffees and shortbread will be served at 6.45pm with the talk starting at 7pm.
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