NewsWhore
08-02-2006, 04:10 PM
The Ministry of Culture says that it has not opposed the DNA analysis of Columbus' remains at the Columbus Memorial Lighthouse as long as the request is made through the correct diplomatic channels. The government has requested that a protocol needs to be signed by the Spanish and Dominican governments, and that any research team should include scientists from both countries, in addition to the usual guarantees in a case such as this.
Spanish researcher Jose Antonio Lorente recently announced that their DNA analysis of human remains kept in Seville confirm that these belong to Christopher Columbus, making it unnecessary to look for more data given that the Dominican authorities have not authorized his request to analyze the remains.
Lorente is the Director of the Genetic Identification Laboratory at the University of Granada, Spain. Lorente now dismisses the need to analyze the remains in Santo Domingo, although he admits, as reported in an EFE wire release, that they could help to complete the picture.
According to his research, what is certain is that Columbus died on 20 May 1506 in Valladolid, Spain. His remains were later taken to Seville and in 1541 to Santo Domingo, at the request of his daughter-in-law Maria de Toledo. In 1795, when Santo Domingo passed over to French rule, the Spanish authorities sent the bones to Havana and in 1898, when Cuba was occupied by the United States, they were taken back to Seville, where they have been kept in the cathedral ever since, according to the report. In 1877, a lead trunk with Columbus' name on it was discovered in the cathedral of Santo Domingo, and since then, the Dominican authorities have insisted that the Spaniards took Hernando Columbus' remains to Havana, instead of Christopher's. Hernando was the discoverer's only legitimate son.
Historian Frank Moya Pons recently published a book that compiles the most complete bibliography on the subject of Columbus's remains. Titled, "Los restos de Colon, bibliografia," it is a 100-page compilation of known and rare works on the subject.
He mentions that the book looks into the circumstances in which the remains were transferred from Valladolid to Seville and later to Santo Domingo in the first half of the 16th century, to be accommodated, "in a more decent manner" in 1664 in the Santo Domingo Cathedral presbytery, in the same vault where they had been placed in 1540, remaining there until their discovery in 1877, when the Cathedral floor was undergoing renovation.
The publication is part of the bibliographical compilations that Moya Pons has prepared, of which he has published four volumes on Literature and Law. The Dominican Academy of History plans to publish four volumes on Dominican history soon.
Historian Jose Chez Checo, president of the Dominican Academy of History, said that the bibliography should become required text and guide for those who study the topic. Moya Pons said that the work will assist to bring light to those who honestly are willing to go beyond patriotic propaganda and tourism interest and those who want to get to the bottom of a debate, that for long time seemed futile to him, but now is vital that the truth come forth, regardless of how painless it could be for some.
Link To Original Article (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#11)
Spanish researcher Jose Antonio Lorente recently announced that their DNA analysis of human remains kept in Seville confirm that these belong to Christopher Columbus, making it unnecessary to look for more data given that the Dominican authorities have not authorized his request to analyze the remains.
Lorente is the Director of the Genetic Identification Laboratory at the University of Granada, Spain. Lorente now dismisses the need to analyze the remains in Santo Domingo, although he admits, as reported in an EFE wire release, that they could help to complete the picture.
According to his research, what is certain is that Columbus died on 20 May 1506 in Valladolid, Spain. His remains were later taken to Seville and in 1541 to Santo Domingo, at the request of his daughter-in-law Maria de Toledo. In 1795, when Santo Domingo passed over to French rule, the Spanish authorities sent the bones to Havana and in 1898, when Cuba was occupied by the United States, they were taken back to Seville, where they have been kept in the cathedral ever since, according to the report. In 1877, a lead trunk with Columbus' name on it was discovered in the cathedral of Santo Domingo, and since then, the Dominican authorities have insisted that the Spaniards took Hernando Columbus' remains to Havana, instead of Christopher's. Hernando was the discoverer's only legitimate son.
Historian Frank Moya Pons recently published a book that compiles the most complete bibliography on the subject of Columbus's remains. Titled, "Los restos de Colon, bibliografia," it is a 100-page compilation of known and rare works on the subject.
He mentions that the book looks into the circumstances in which the remains were transferred from Valladolid to Seville and later to Santo Domingo in the first half of the 16th century, to be accommodated, "in a more decent manner" in 1664 in the Santo Domingo Cathedral presbytery, in the same vault where they had been placed in 1540, remaining there until their discovery in 1877, when the Cathedral floor was undergoing renovation.
The publication is part of the bibliographical compilations that Moya Pons has prepared, of which he has published four volumes on Literature and Law. The Dominican Academy of History plans to publish four volumes on Dominican history soon.
Historian Jose Chez Checo, president of the Dominican Academy of History, said that the bibliography should become required text and guide for those who study the topic. Moya Pons said that the work will assist to bring light to those who honestly are willing to go beyond patriotic propaganda and tourism interest and those who want to get to the bottom of a debate, that for long time seemed futile to him, but now is vital that the truth come forth, regardless of how painless it could be for some.
Link To Original Article (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#11)