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Copernicus reburied by Catholic church

By James Dacey

In his time his views may have shocked the Catholic church to its core, but on Saturday Nicolaus Copernicus was blessed and reburied by some of Poland’s highest-ranking clerics, nearly 500 years after he was laid to rest in an unmarked grave.

The ceremony came five years after what were believed to be the remains of the great astronomer were discovered beneath the floor of the cathedral in Frombork, on Poland’s Baltic coast.

Subsequent DNA analysis has confirmed the discovery after an amount of Copernicus’ hair was discovered inside a copy of his 16th century astronomy reference book Calendarium Romanum Magnum.

This short film describes Saturday’s events and how the Catholic church has tried to patch things up with the scientific community in recent years.

Posted by James Dacey on May 24, 2010 5:34 PM | Permalink