A UK tour by the reconstructed head of King Richard III has been expanded to include another city with historic links to the king.
The city of Gloucester has now been added to the tour of English cities which is showcasing the breathtakingly detailed replica of King Richard's head.
Richard was made Duke of Gloucester in 1461, and in 1483 he made Gloucester a city and granting it its rights. Now the city has been added to the tour schedule and is expected to receive the replica head for display in March 2014, shortly before it returns to its final home in Leicester.
The head, which is currently on display in Leicester's Guildhall museum, is due to visit Gloucester in March 2014, shortly before it returns to Leicester to go on permanent display.
The model relies on pin-point details from a CT scan taken of the king's skull by Leicester Royal Infirmary, following the discovery of his remains beneath the Greyfriars car park in August 2012 by a team of archaeologists from the University of Leicester.
It was created by the forensic art team of the University of Dundee, and offers the most accurate yet interpretation of what King Richard could have looked like in life. It was revealed for the first time in the Channel 4 documentary, The King in the Car Park, earlier this year.
King Richard's head is currently on display in Leicester as part of the Guildhall's Richard III: Leicester's Search for a King exhibition, which shows the fascinating story of his life, death, and discovery told by the historians, archaeologists and scientists who took part.
Leicester City Mayor Peter Soulsby said: "I am delighted that this extraordinary replica of King Richard's head will be seen by so many visitors in historic English cities with which he had links
"It is only right that Gloucester is on that list, and I hope it proves as popular an attraction there as it has done here."
The head will remain on display at Leicester's Guildhall until June 8, after which it will go to Bosworth Battlefield, where the king was killed in 1485.
From there, it will go on to Yorkshire - where Richard's childhood home Middleham Castle is located, and Northamptonshire - the county where he was born at Fotheringay Castle in 1452. The head will then go on display at the British Museum in London before going to Gloucester.
The head will finally return home to Leicester in spring 2014 to go on permanent display at the city's new Richard III visitor centre, which is being created at the former Leicester Grammar School in St Martin's Place, next to the grave site.
King Richard's reconstructed head was commissioned by the Richard III Society, which has agreed for the head to be displayed eventually at the new visitor centre.
Gloucester City Council Leader, Paul James, commented: " We are delighted to be included in this national tour. Gloucester has very strong links with Richard III and I am sure there will be tremendous interest in this exhibition when it visits the City. This was an astounding national discovery and the work that has gone into this replica head is amazing. It will be a 'must see' event."
The temporary exhibition, entitled Richard III: Leicester's Search for a King, is running at Leicester Guildhall. For more details visit www.visitleicester.info/richardIII