'Irish giant' may finally get respectful burial after 200 years on display

Skeleton of Charles Byrne, who had gigantism, could now be buried at sea in accordance with his final wishes

The "Irish giant", a centrepiece of the Hunterian anatomical museum in London, could be released to allow the remains to be given a respectful burial after more than two centuries on display.

The skeleton is that of Charles Byrne, an 18th-century man who had a genetic form of gigantism that caused him to grow to more than 2.31 metres (7ft 7in) tall.