A fantastic discovery, says David Carpenter, professor of medieval history at King's College in London, to the British BBC.
He calls Magna Carta "one of the most significant documents in constitutional history".
Was auctioned in
It was Carpenter who began analyzing the document, after seeing an image of it on Harvard's website. According to the university's register, it was bought at an auction in 1946 for 27 dollars and 50 cents. Then it was described as a water-damaged copy of the treaty from 1327.
After extensive investigations – including ultraviolet light, handwriting analysis, and linguistic examination – Carpenter and colleague Nicholas Vincent at the University of East Anglia can now confirm that it is an authentic Magna Carta document.
Magna Carta ("the great document") was a treaty that England's King John was forced to sign in 1215, after he had violated several old laws and customs. It established the subjects' rights and freedoms – including inheritance rights, protection from unreasonable taxes, and equality before the law – and is generally considered to be the foundation of British parliamentarism and human rights in general.
Worth millions
The treaty was written out and sent around to different parts of England and was reissued by different kings until around the year 1300. This resulted in there being approximately 200 originals, of which around 25 preserved, according to professor Vincent. Two copies from 1215 are at the British Library.
The version that has now been found was issued by King Edward I. Its value is difficult to estimate, but in 2007, a copy of Magna Carta was sold at auction for over 21 million dollars, writes AP.
