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WARSAW, Poland – Researchers believe they have identified the remains of Nicolaus Copernicus.
The identification was done by comparing DNA from a skeleton they have found with that of hair retrieved from one of the 16th-century astronomer's books.
Jerzy Gassowski, an academic at an archeology school in Poland, also says facial reconstruction of the skull his team found buried in a cathedral in Poland closely resembles existing portraits of Copernicus.
Gassowski and Marie Allen, a Swedish DNA expert, told reporters about their findings in Warsaw on Thursday.
Allen said DNA from the bones and teeth matches that of hair found in a book the Polish astronomer owned.
It is in a library at Sweden's Uppsala University.
The astronomer's theories identified the sun, not the Earth, as the centre of the universe.
