Archaeologists who discovered the body of King Richard III under a car park now plan to exhume a 600-year-old lead-lined stone coffin found nearby.

University of Leicester Archaeological Services have applied to the Ministry of Justice for an exhumation licence and to Leicester City Council to extend their dig to discover more about the Church of the Grey Friars where King Richard III was buried.

In February teams revealed that remains found under the city car park were “beyond reasonable doubt” those of the last Plantagenet king.

Now, experts want to examine the second discovery found near the site and said the stone coffin potentially contains the 14th century remains of a medieval knight called Sir William Moton.

He is believed to have been buried at Grey Friars Church in 1362 – more than a century before King Richard III.

Lead archaeologist Richard Buckley, of the University of Leicester, said: “This will be a great opportunity to confirm the plan of the east end of the Grey Friars church to learn more about its dating and architecture, and will give us the chance to investigate other burials known to be inside the building.”

He said the tomb is one of four graves uncovered during the search for Richard III.

Preparations are taking place for the reinterment of King Richard III at Leicester Cathedral in spring next year.

But, as reported in The Press on Saturday, campaigners are this month set to launch a legal challenge in a bid to have Richard lll’s remains interred in York Minster instead of Leicester Cathedral.