One of the two women, buried in the Benedictine Abbey in Tyniec in the 12th century, was probably dark blonde with brown eyes, suggest the anthropologists and geneticians from the Jagiellonian University, Institute of Forensic Expertise in Kraków and the Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam. The researchers are capable of determining the eye and hair colour of other historical figures.
The JU Department of Anthropology has been cooperating with the Benedictine Abbey for 60 years. Previously the researchers worked on the remains of two abbots – the golden one and the lead one. Their "names" are derived from personal items that were found in the place of their burial.
However, the most intriguing discoveries were made throughout the last three years when scientists were examining the skeletons of presumed abbots and friars buried in the monastery. The examination revealed that among the persons buried in the monastery were two women.
"To confirm the gender of the examined remains we asked dr hab Wojciech Branicki for help. Prof. Branicki is a genetician at the Institute of Forensic Expertise in Kraków and a member of the JU Genetics and Evolutionism Department. The genetic expertise confirmed our assumptions. Women were rarely buried in monasteries, though such situations occurred. They could be close relatives or donors. With the use of experimental genetics the researchers managed to determine not only the gender of the remains but also the colour of the woman's hair and eyes", says Dr hab. Jerzy Głąb, Head of the Department of Anthropology. He adds that the staff at the Department is currently working on the monograph exploring the physical condition of Tyniec Benedictines from the past.
The determination of the eye and hair colour of the mysterious woman from Tyniec was possible thanks to the HIrisPlex system, which enables the analysis of human DNA. The HIrisPlex system was designed by a team of researchers from Kraków and Rotterdam. Initially, its primary aim was to facilitate the work of criminologists but soon it turned out that it might be of use to archeologists too.
Dr hab. Wojeciech Branicki notes that the researchers are capable of describing facial features of other historical figures. Having examined gen. Władysław Sikorski's DNA taken from his tooth, the researchers discovered that gen. Sikorski was a fair haired man with blue eyes. These findings tally with historical records.
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