Who would have thought that bowel samples can actually solve the 700 - year old mystery behind the death or murder of Cangrande I della Scala. He was a ruler of Verona at a tender age of 20. He became well known for his bravery. In fact, he was able to claim several territories during his reign.
But his leadership was cut short when at the age of 38, he died. He became very ill and based from hearsays, it all happened when he drank from a spring.
In the current age, when a prominent person dies, people will have speculations. People might ask, "Was it a suicide? Was there a foul play?" That was the same for Cangrande's case. Right after his death, rumor has it that he was deliberately poisoned. But technology then cannot prove if it was indeed a foul play.
More than 670 years later, Gino Fornaciari, professor of history of medicine and paleopathology at the University of Pisa, and his team decided to examine Cangrande's body. A sample of bowel was found and they have made further examinations on this. True enough, they found out a deadly substance in the sample. This was a plant known as foxglove. According to Discovery News, Fornaciari told them that Cangrande became sick and suffered from diarrhea. These were the symptoms if poisoned by the said plant.
As to who killed Cangrande, one of the main suspects for the murder was his successor, Mastino II. Cangrande's physician was hanged by Mastino shortly after the ruler's death. This shows that even centuries ago, political power has made people yearn for more. Similar to what we have today all over the news, those who are hungry for power will kill anyone that gets in their way. Lucky Mastino, he was born centuries ago. Otherwise, he will surely get caught if the speculations were true.
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