Pub search for tomb of murdered king

HISTORIANS hunting for the tomb of murdered King James I have returned to the scene of the crime — in the bowels of a Perth city centre pub.

The hunt for the 15th Century Scottish ruler’s remains has zeroed i n on Christie’s Bar in Kinnoull Street.

Volunteers have been searching the pub basement for traces of the old Blackfriars Dominican Friary where James I was assassinated.

The team has been trying to secure concrete proof that it was the site of the 780-yearold building.

James I was killed in the friary’s royal chambers on February 4 1437 and was buried in the city’s Charterhouse monastery.

The building was destroyed during the reformation 100 years later and the exact location of his grave is a mystery.

The investigation at Christie’s Bar, which focuses on irregular stonework in the cellar, marks the 623rd anniversary of James I’s birth.

Gavin Lindsay, of Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust, said: “We’re very confident that the lower irregular courses of masonry at Christie’s are from a high-status medieval building.

“Given the documentary and map-based evidence, it is most likely that these are the last visible remains of one of the Blackfriars Friary buildings where James I often stayed when in Perth.”