by Lisa Cooke | Jun 12, 2014 | 01 What's New, DNA
Michael Ibsen, a cabinet maker living in London, was recently awarded the title of “royal descendant” when researchers identified him as a direct maternal descendant of Ann of York. Why did this lucky man have an unsolicited team of researchers filling in 17 generations of his genealogy?
They were trying to identify a body.
A body discovered under a parking lot in Leichester, England.
According to an article in the Mail Online, thanks to the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of Ibsen, that body has been identified as Richard the III. Researchers needed Ibsen because his mtDNA is EXACTLY the same as his 17th great grandmother, Ann of York. Because mothers pass their mtDNA to all of their children, and only the daughters pass it on to the next generation, Ann had exactly the same mtDNA as her brother, Richard.
With the positive identification in hand, researchers are now prepared to undertake a £100,000 project to discover the combination of letters in a four-digit code that makes up the genetic book that is (or was) Richard III. This process is called full genome sequencing. They are also planning to sequence Mr. Ibsen’s genome to see what shared segments may still remain.
What does this project have to do with you?
So what does this project have to do with you the genealogist who doesn’t have a team of researchers hammering out your 17th generation grandparents?
First, it is a win for genetic genealogy as mtDNA was used to unequivocally link past and future generations. Each story like this serves to increase buy soma medication online awareness for genetic genealogy, which means more people get tested, which means databases grow larger, which means you will find more matches, which means you will have more genealogical success. Plus, the comparison of the ancient Richard the III genome with the modern genome of Mr. Ibsen will be the first of its kind to try to identify shared segments of DNA after so many generations.
In a recent interview Michael Ibsen said, “I almost hope somewhere along the line they dig up some more people so others can be ancestors and descendants in the same sort of way. It is going to be an extraordinary experience.”
Someone needs to introduce Mr. Ibsen to genetic genealogy as that is EXACTLY what genetic genealogy is all about-but minus the digging up the bones part! Genetic genealogy is all about using the DNA of living people to reconstruct the DNA of your ancestors. It is about making connections among modern day genealogists that can help them answer questions about their relatives.
While a full genome sequence is not a practical genealogical tool for most genealogists, there are other kids of DNA tests that could help you answer genealogical questions.
You can find more information about a few famous people and their DNA here.
And learn even more by reading MNT’s article 3D model provides new insight into King Richard III’s spinal condition.
And don’t miss Lisa’s interview with Dr. Turi King who ran the DNA testing on King Richard III. Listen to Genealogy Gems Podcast episode 152 now.
by Lisa Cooke | May 23, 2014 | 01 What's New, MyHeritage
MyHeritage has signed on to sponsor The Genealogy Gems Podcast! Their support helps us to continue to bring you free multimedia content to inspire and inform your genealogy journey.
Our editorial team has spent several months getting to know MyHeritage.com. We think you’ll love their…
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24/7 record searching technology. MyHeritage uses a unique and powerful search system called Record Matches to constantly cull 5 billion historical records for your family. It’s the only family history interface out there using semantic analysis to search newspaper articles, books, and other free-text documents. It is also the first to translate names between languages. I personally like that matches from MyHeritage’s historical newspaper collections show up toward the top. It’s a great way to find obituaries!
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Offline software companion. Family Tree Builder 7.0 is free software that allows you to keep a master copy of your family tree offline. Read my blog post on that topic here.
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by Lisa Cooke | Mar 23, 2020 | 01 What's New, MyHeritage |
We got some happy news during this time of self-quarantine. MyHeritage is granting free access to MyHeritage In Color™ through April 23, 2020.
Colorizing Old Family Photos
I shared this new service with you recently here on the Genealogy Gems blog, along with an example of the lovely work it did with one of my own old family photos.
Eddie Larson and his wife colorized.
Read the post to learn more about using the service: MyHeritage Launches Colorized Photos!
Details on the Free Access
Here are the details on the free access and some exciting prize drawings from my friend Daniel Horowitz, Genealogy Expert at MyHeritage:
I’m happy to share that we’re giving everyone FREE and unlimited access to MyHeritage In Color™ from March 23 to April 23, so that people everywhere can join in the fun of colorizing their black and white photos.
Ordinarily only 10 photos can be colorized by users who do not have a Complete plan, but now, you can colorize as many photos as you’d like for free.
Colorizing photos is the perfect activity for anyone who is isolated at home. We invite everyone to pull out their family photo albums, colorize their photos, and start reminiscing.
Enter the Drawing
Over the coming month, anyone who shares their colorized photos on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram with the hashtag #ColorBeatsCoronavirusBlues and tags @MyHeritage will enter a weekly draw. Each week we’ll select one lucky winner who will receive a free MyHeritage Complete subscription!
