- Ned Kelly is considered by many in Australia to be a folk hero
- Others have called him a cold-blooded killer
- His remains have been positively identified; most of the skull is missing
(CNN) -- Edward "Ned" Kelly packed a lot of living, stealing and killing in his scant 25 years.
So much so that Mick Jagger portrayed him in a movie. As did Heath Ledger. Australian artist Sidney Nolan made Ned Kelly the subject of a series of paintings.
The cattle rustler, robber and cop killer was hanged in November 1880 after a string of crimes, including the deaths of three police officers in one incident. His reputed last words: "Such is life."
Australia's best-known outlaw, or bushranger, was buried in the Old Melbourne Gaol. But his remains became "lost" after they were transferred to another prison near Melbourne.
Thursday, Victoria Attorney General Robert Clark announced the search for the remains was over. Through DNA analysis, Kelly's headless skeleton has been positively identified.
"To think a group of scientists could identify the body of a man who was executed more than 130 years ago, moved and buried in a haphazard fashion among 33 other prisoners -- most of whom are not identified -- is amazing," Clark said in a prepared statement.
The official credited doctors and scientists at the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine.
A DNA sample taken from Melbourne schoolteacher Leigh Olver, great-grandson of Kelly's sister, was instrumental.
Opinions on the infamous Kelly and his gang are decidedly mixed, according to the Australian Dictionary of Biography.
Some scholars and observers have described the outlaw as cold-blooded and egotistical. Author Clive Turnbull said the son of an Irish immigrant showed courage, independence and sympathy for the underdog.
Kelly is an integral part of Australian cultural history, with his defiance of the oppressive British authority of the time striking a chord for many Australians.
Kelly was captured and hanged after a shootout with police in the Victorian town of Glenrowan.
In the shootout, the gang was wearing suits of homemade armor that had been fashioned from farming implements. In 2001, the State Library of Victoria purchased a piece of it for $100,000 (then Aust. $200,000). The library's collection includes the outlaw's helmet and breastplate.
According to Clark, the outlaw's remains were among those transferred from the Old Melbourne Gaol to Pentridge Prison in 1929. The skeletons were exhumed again in 2009.
"The project required examination of the remains of 34 individuals in total, many of which were co-mingled and incomplete, making the successful identification even more remarkable," according to Clark.
The investigation began when a skull believed to be Kelly's was given by an individual to officials in 2009. The skull "had been taken from the Old Melbourne Gaol in December 1978 where it had been on display next to the death mask of Ned Kelly. An ink inscription 'E. Kelly' was written on the side."
The skull analysis prompted forensic experts to try to identify Kelly's skeleton.
"Ned Kelly's remains turned out to be an almost complete skeleton found buried in a wooden ax box, although most of the skull was missing," Australian officials said. "Consultations will commence shortly with Ned Kelly's family and other parties involved, regarding the appropriate future resting place for Ned Kelly's remains."
One problem emerged in the process of identifying the remains, however: The skull from the Old Melbourne Gaol wasn't a match.
That mystery continues.
(CNN) -- Edward "Ned" Kelly packed a lot of living, stealing and killing in his scant 25 years.
So much so that Mick Jagger portrayed him in a movie. As did Heath Ledger. Australian artist Sidney Nolan made Ned Kelly the subject of a series of paintings.
The cattle rustler, robber and cop killer was hanged in November 1880 after a string of crimes, including the deaths of three police officers in one incident. His reputed last words: "Such is life."
Australia's best-known outlaw, or bushranger, was buried in the Old Melbourne Gaol. But his remains became "lost" after they were transferred to another prison near Melbourne.
Thursday, Victoria Attorney General Robert Clark announced the search for the remains was over. Through DNA analysis, Kelly's headless skeleton has been positively identified.
"To think a group of scientists could identify the body of a man who was executed more than 130 years ago, moved and buried in a haphazard fashion among 33 other prisoners -- most of whom are not identified -- is amazing," Clark said in a prepared statement.
The official credited doctors and scientists at the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine.
A DNA sample taken from Melbourne schoolteacher Leigh Olver, great-grandson of Kelly's sister, was instrumental.
Opinions on the infamous Kelly and his gang are decidedly mixed, according to the Australian Dictionary of Biography.
Some scholars and observers have described the outlaw as cold-blooded and egotistical. Author Clive Turnbull said the son of an Irish immigrant showed courage, independence and sympathy for the underdog.
Kelly is an integral part of Australian cultural history, with his defiance of the oppressive British authority of the time striking a chord for many Australians.
Kelly was captured and hanged after a shootout with police in the Victorian town of Glenrowan.
In the shootout, the gang was wearing suits of homemade armor that had been fashioned from farming implements. In 2001, the State Library of Victoria purchased a piece of it for $100,000 (then Aust. $200,000). The library's collection includes the outlaw's helmet and breastplate.
According to Clark, the outlaw's remains were among those transferred from the Old Melbourne Gaol to Pentridge Prison in 1929. The skeletons were exhumed again in 2009.
"The project required examination of the remains of 34 individuals in total, many of which were co-mingled and incomplete, making the successful identification even more remarkable," according to Clark.
The investigation began when a skull believed to be Kelly's was given by an individual to officials in 2009. The skull "had been taken from the Old Melbourne Gaol in December 1978 where it had been on display next to the death mask of Ned Kelly. An ink inscription 'E. Kelly' was written on the side."
The skull analysis prompted forensic experts to try to identify Kelly's skeleton.
"Ned Kelly's remains turned out to be an almost complete skeleton found buried in a wooden ax box, although most of the skull was missing," Australian officials said. "Consultations will commence shortly with Ned Kelly's family and other parties involved, regarding the appropriate future resting place for Ned Kelly's remains."
One problem emerged in the process of identifying the remains, however: The skull from the Old Melbourne Gaol wasn't a match.
That mystery continues.
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