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Four centuries after the writer of Don Quixote died, experts
have been trying to locate his remains in the hope of
establishing an official burial site that would attract tourists
and literary pilgrims.
They began using ground-penetrating radar last April to explore
the sub-soil of an old brick-walled convent in the heart of
Madrid where the writer had asked to buried.
Researchers said on Monday they had found some bones and a
crumbling casket after digging in the crypt. A piece of the
coffin had the letters "M" and "C." on it, spelled out in metal
tacks, they said.
One of the forensic anthropologists in the research team urged
caution, however, as the findings were preliminary.
"We can't at all confirm that we have found Cervantes, we can't
guarantee this was Cervantes' coffin either, but the reality is
that we have found a very battered coffin which was falling
apart, and some badly damaged bones in that corner of the
crypt," Francisco Etxeberria told a news conference.
At least seven graves have been identified under the convent,
although only two have been opened so far.
Cervantes' Don Quixote is recognized as one of the world's
greatest literary works and considered a precursor of the modern
novel. He was buried in Madrid after his death in 1616, the same
week in which William Shakespeare died.
(Writing by Sarah White; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
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