Unearthing Richard III

King Richard III

• The remains of King Richard III were discovered in a car park in Leicester, England.
• The Battle of Bosworth Field, fought on August 22, 1485, ended the War of the Roses.
• Richard III was buried in Greyfriars Friary in Leicester after his death on the battlefield.
• Modern analysis revealed that Richard III had scoliosis, a curvature of the spine.
• King Richard III's remains were re-interred at Leicester Cathedral in 2015.
• The car park where the remains of King Richard III were found is located in Leicester, England.
• The Battle of Bosworth Field, which resulted in the death of Richard III, ended the War of the Roses.
• The Greyfriars Friary, where Richard III was initially buried, is believed to have been destroyed during the reign of Henry VIII.
• Heritage Minister John Glenn stated that protecting the medieval friary buried under Leicester is significant because it provides insight into our shared history and national heritage.
• Modern analysis of King Richard III's skeletal remains revealed scoliosis, a curvature of the spine.
• Shakespeare, in his play "Richard III", portrayed the king as a "poisonous bunch-backed toad".

Barikot Temple

• The archaeological site of a recently discovered Buddhist temple is located in the Swat Valley of Pakistan.
• The ruins of the temple stand at a height of over 100 feet.
• The smaller stupa at the front of the temple served as a reliquary, housing sacred relics.
• The Swat Valley emerged as a sacred Buddhist center during the Indo-Greek era.
• The temple's abandonment in Barikot was likely due to a combination of factors, including natural disasters, political instability, and the decline of Buddhism in the region.
• The ancient Gandhara civilization relied on Barikot as a 'breadbasket' for agriculture.
• The temple in Barikot was likely abandoned during the period of the Kushan Empire (1st to 3rd century AD).
• The Kushan Empire stretched from Afghanistan to Pakistan and into northern India.
• The ancient name for Barikot, mentioned in classical Greek and Latin texts, was 'Bazira'.
• The historical region of Gandhara, where Barikot is located, is situated in present-day northwestern Pakistan and northeastern Afghanistan.
• A stupa is a dome-shaped structure, typically containing relics of Buddhist saints or holy figures.
• Archaeological evidence suggests that an earlier Buddhist temple existed in Barikot, estimated to be around 2,000 years old.