Tests on the long-lost skeleton of Richard III reveal the medieval monarch had a taste for rich foods such as peacock , heron and swan , and that his liking for the finer things in life -- including wine -- increased significantly after he became the king of England . Scientists at the British Geological Survey measured the levels of isotopes including oxygen , strontium , nitrogen and carbon in the remains of Richard III , found buried beneath a parking lot in the English city of Leicester in 2012 . In a paper published in the Journal of Archaeological Sciences , they say the tests can reveal clues as to where a person lived , and what they ate and drank , allowing experts `` to reconstruct the life history '' of the last Plantagenet king . READ MORE : King Richard III 's grave opens to the public . Isotope geochemist Angela Lamb , who led the study , said two teeth -- a molar and premolar -- and two bones -- a rib and femur -- were analyzed because each held different information and could offer a variety of clues to Richard III 's life . `` The teeth develop in childhood and do n't change , so from them we can get information about a person 's early years , '' she told CNN . `` Bones are different ; they remodel and repair themselves through life -- if you break a bone , for example , it can heal . The femur is dense and slow-growing , so it can tell us about the last 10 to 15 years of a person 's life , whereas the rib bone is much more spongy and regenerates much more quickly , so it can reveal information about the last two to three years . '' High-protein diet . This is key in the case of Richard III , since he became king just 26 months before his death at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485 -- and analysis suggests his diet changed markedly in the few short years after he was crowned . Medieval aristocrats are known to have eaten high-protein diets full of freshwater fish and wildfowl , in part because of religious observances that called for `` meat-free '' fasting for up to a third of the year . Fish and wildfowl -- birds such as heron , swan and egret -- were not considered meat . `` Obviously , Richard was a nobleman beforehand , and so his diet would be reasonably rich already , '' explained Lamb . `` But once he became king we would expect him to be wining and dining more , banqueting more . Food was a real mark of status in the medieval period . `` We have the menu from his coronation banquet and it was very elaborate -- lots of wildfowl , including real 'delicacies ' such as peacock and swan , and fish -- carp , pike and so on , which were cultivated in special fishponds . '' Scientific analysis . Matching up historic records from the king 's lifetime with brand new scientific data harvested from his remains has offered experts a unique opportunity to `` cross-check '' what is already known about his life and times . As Richard Buckley , the University of Leicester archaeologist in charge of the dig which uncovered the king 's remains , explained : `` It is very rare indeed in archaeology to be able to identify a named individual with precise dates and a documented life . `` This has enabled stable-isotope analysis to show how his environment changed at different times and , perhaps most significantly , identified marked changes in his diet when he became king in 1483 . '' Isotope analysis backs up many of the records of Richard 's life -- that he was born in eastern England but spent part of his childhood in western Britain . And knowing where he lived , from ancient documents , allowed the experts to learn something new about isotope analysis . `` By looking at the levels of oxygen isotopes , we can tell where a person lived , because the oxygen comes from the drinking water that they consumed , '' said Lamb . `` In this case , the isotopes suggested that [ towards the end of his life ] Richard was living in the extreme southwest of Britain , but we know from the records that this is n't the case , so we had to look for another explanation . '' Wine habit . Given the discoveries they had already made about Richard 's extravagant diet , they began to wonder if the discrepancy in oxygen isotopes pointed to the fact he was drinking something other than water . Brewing water into ale is known to alter isotope levels , but beer was not a high-status drink in the medieval era . `` We needed something that would tie in with the luxury food he would have been eating , '' said Lamb . `` Back then wine was very much the preserve of the upper classes -- it was imported , expensive and only the very wealthy could afford it . '' By carrying out tests with modern equivalents , the scientists were able to conclude that Richard drank up to a bottle of wine a day -- and to work out , for the first time , that wine consumption affects oxygen isotope levels . `` It is fascinating , '' said Lamb . `` We use these techniques all the time , but we are never able to 'cross-check ' them , and it is only his which enabled us to figure it out . '' READ MORE : Richard III 's spine was twisted , not hunched . READ MORE : Scientists to sequence Richard III 's genome .
Tests on skeleton of Richard III , a king of England , reveal a liking for the finer things in life . Score: 6 Medieval aristocrats are known to have eaten high-protein diets . Tests also revealed that Richard III had a taste for wine -- perhaps a bottle a day .