Man seeks burial place for 800-year-old remains in shed

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 16 Oct, 06:08 · Archive

An Oxfordshire man has discovered approximately 30 to 35 human remains, dating to around 1240 AD, left in his shed by his late father.

Owen Edwards discovered approximately 30 to 35 human remains dating back around 800 years in his shed following his father Eric W. Edwards's death in 2017. His father, a local archaeology scholar and academic, had studied the remains over fifty years ago and dated them to approximately 1240 AD. Edwards has nicknamed them 'the residents'. The remains are believed to have come from excavations of Oxford's lost Greyfriars Friary, now the site of Westgate Oxford, a medieval Franciscan complex founded in the 1240s.

The friary was one of several monastic sites established in Oxford as the Franciscan order grew in influence within the University. It eventually expanded beyond the town wall with royal permission. However, the friary came to an end during the Dissolution of the Monasteries under King Henry VIII in the 1530s. The buildings were dismantled and much of the stone was reused elsewhere.

Eric W. Edwards believed the remains came from individuals ranging in age from infancy to around 40 years old. Owen Edwards is now trying to find an appropriate place to bury the remains.

How it is being reported

• Man finds 800-year old human remains left in shedAn Oxfordshire man is trying to find a place to bury approximately 30 to 35 human remains left by his father, dating back 800 years.Oxfordshire Guardian · 16 Oct, 05:00
• Man finds 800-year old human remains left in shedAn Oxfordshire man is trying to find a place to bury approximately 30 to 35 human remains left by his father, dating back 800 years.Oxford Mail · 16 Oct, 05:00

In this story: Owen Edwards · Eric W. Edwards · Greyfriars Friary · Oxford · Oxfordshire · Oxford Archaeology Unit · King Henry VIII

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