EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND—According to a BBC report, archaeologists have uncovered artifacts going back 800 years at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Queen Elizabeth II's official residence in Scotland. Discoveries include a twelfth-century jug fragment, a horse skeleton, and a medieval shoe, as well as a cache of oyster shells and wine bottles. The latter may provide insight into the diets of courtiers and ambassadors during the reigns of Mary, Queen of Scots, and James VI of Scotland, who became James I after being crowned king of England in 1603. Researchers also unearthed wine and spirit vessels, food remains, and fragments of children's games, which belonged to families living in nearby tenements during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. "The survey has provided a unique opportunity to understand more about the fascinating development of the Abbey Strand and its surroundings," says archaeologist Gordon Ewart, referring to the stretch of Edinburgh's Royal Mile that culminates at the palace, "and to explore how the site has been the historic and symbolic bridge between the palace and the city of Edinburgh for centuries." To read more about the archaeology of Britain's royals, go to "Westminster Abbey's Hidden History."
