Emese Gábor, a research fellow for the Institute of Hungarian Research (Magyarságkutató Intézet), has revealed in a YouTube video that a skeleton which is likely to be that of King Matthias Corvinus has been found at the charnel house of the national memorial site, located where Virgin Mary Basilica used to stand in Székesfehérvár, Hungary.
As she explained, the individual whose bones were discovered died at the age of 47, as the reconstruction process revealed. That is the exact age when King Matthias passed away in 1490, having been born in 1443.
Additionally, the facial reconstruction showed a close family relation to John Corvinus. John Corvinus was the son of King Matthias, and his skull was genetically identified after it was discovered in Lepoglava, Croatia, in 2022.
The research documentation has been shared with a highly regarded forensic anthropologist, Martin Trautmann, at the University of Helsinki, who independently verified the findings by the Hungarian research institute.
However, after the news broke, the Institute of Hungarian Research put out a press release, somewhat curtailing the media hype around the discovery. They wrote: ‘The claims about the skeleton of King Matthias have not yet been confirmed. Scientific verification of the hypothesis is ongoing. We will be able to take a final position after verification.’
According to the researchers, only genetic testing can provide 100 per cent certainty of identification, which remains to be done. Nevertheless, based on the anthropological evidence, the probability that the remains of King Matthias were indeed found is extremely high.
King Matthias ruled the Kingdom of Hungary between 1458 and 1490. He is a major part of Hungarian folklore and is often included in folk tales as the archetype for a wise, just ruler. He is one of the best-known and most influential rulers in Hungarian history. King Matthias’s face is printed on the 1,000 HUF bills.
Related articles:
