Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Tomb May Hold Key to Shakespeare

Sarcophagus may hold manuscripts tying Bard to another writer

By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 9, 2009 1:27 PM CDT

(Newser) – A 17th-century tomb might hold the key to the enduring mystery of William Shakespeare's identity, the Daily Telegraph reports, and researchers are hoping to take a peek inside. A scan found that the ornate sarcophagus, built at an English church by Shakespeare contemporary and fellow scribe Fulke Greville, contains three "boxlike" shapes that could be documents and manuscripts that shed light on the link between the men.

The pair could even be the same person: “They lived in the same street, had the same friends and enemies, and were members of the same literary circles,” the Telegraph notes. Greville also called himself “the Master of Shakespeare.” Now, searchers want to insert a minute camera on a tube into the monument; they say any documents may have survived if they were in lead-lined boxes, typical in that era.

Circa 1600, Fulke Greville, (1554 - 1628), English poet and courtier.
Circa 1600, Fulke Greville, (1554 - 1628), English poet and courtier.   (Getty Images)
1623, English dramatist, William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616).
1623, English dramatist, William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616).   (Getty Images)
Circa 1605, William Shakespeare (1564-1616), English dramatist and poet.
Circa 1605, William Shakespeare (1564-1616), English dramatist and poet.   (Getty Images)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 7 comments
brawne
Aug 10, 2009 11:21 AM CDT
Seriously, the only difference between writing for a living and prostitution is that I don't have to screw the crumbs between my sheets.
brawne
Aug 10, 2009 11:17 AM CDT
Sense? You want sense? Shakespeare, you can't read 'As You Like It' and think that was written by the same person who wrote the Dark Sonnets. That someone centuries ago did a Robert Ludlum or James Patterson isn't that weird. Robert's been dead for years and is still a best seller and Jamie? Please--the guy has a branded name, pays someone up front to write the book, puts their name in tiny print and cashes in. It's like the Syndication of poorly-paid writers who wrote all the Nancy Drew, Hardy Boy, Bobbsey Twins etc. They got 125 bucks and the branded name got all the publicity.
beatmastermcfly
Aug 10, 2009 5:22 AM CDT
wait nothing about this article makes any sense.
 

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Timelines   |   POPSUGAR Tech   |   Business Insider   |   HuffPost Entertainment   |   NewsOne