Past Crimes: Archaeological & Historical Evidence for Ancient Misdeeds by Julie Wileman

Author:Julie Wileman
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: TRUE CRIME / General
ISBN: 9781473859791
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Published: 2015-04-29T16:00:00+00:00

Figure 17. The wooden sign claimed to be the Titulus Crucis

Forensic investigations were undertaken on a piece of bone and a fragment of cloth reputedly relics of Joan of Arc, which, it was claimed, were rescued from the river Seine after she was burned at the stake in 1431. It turns out the cloth had been dyed to appear burned, and the bone was from a domestic cat.

The Vatican holds numerous relics in its collections – many of which on investigation have turned out to be from farm animals, but had been certified as genuine parts of various saints. There are two separate skulls of Saint Peter – one in the Vatican, the other at the Cathedral of St John Lateran. Further bones of Peter were said to have been discovered and kept by Pope Pius XII in his chambers. In 1956 an anthropologist found that they included five tibias! The Virgin also had many legs, if the claims of various churches in Spain are to be believed. At one time, Canterbury Cathedral had some of the clay left over from when God made Adam.

The monks of Glastonbury Abbey probably committed a famous fraud with a secular relic. In 1191, after a disastrous fire, and suffering from competition in the pilgrim trade, the monks miraculously discovered the remains of King Arthur and Queen Guinevere in the grounds of the abbey (among a number of other fortuitous relics that turned up around the same time). The lead cross that was said to have been found with the bones bore an inscription: hic iacet sepultus INCLITUS rex ARTHURIUS in insula AVALONIA; a slightly different version was drawn by the antiquarian William Camden, but it has subsequently disappeared (Figure 18). There is an account by Giraldus of Wales, who claimed to have been present at the time of the discovery. He said that the monks were told where to dig by the king, Henry II, who had been told of the site by an aged poet. It would have suited the king to find evidence that Arthur was truly dead, as he wished to put an end to Welsh insurgence and, for the Welsh, Arthur was a symbol of independence. So this was a very convenient fraud, both for the king and for the monks!

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