A Medieval Vampire Was Found Buried In Croatia, And Disturbing Things Had Been Done To Him In Death
Last year, archaeologists were conducting excavations at a gravesite in Croatia when they uncovered evidence of a vampire burial.
Investigations revealed that the remains of the deceased had been moved on purpose, and two stones were placed near the head and feet.
The stones were likely meant to prevent the individual from rising from the grave. The discovery shows how such beliefs persisted in eastern medieval Europe even after the adoption of Christianity.
The grave was discovered at the archaeological site of Rašaška, located about 70 miles southeast of Zagreb. It is thought to date back between the 13th and 16th centuries. In this region, the medieval period lasted a little longer than in other parts of Europe.
A typical medieval burial in the region consisted of the dead being laid to rest on their backs. The arms would be at their sides or folded across their chests. However, this particular grave strayed from the ordinary and stood out in many ways.
The researchers first noticed large stones in the grave. They later realized that the stones must have fallen from a nearby wall.
Upon further analysis, they found that the skeleton had been decapitated, and the skull was buried separately from the rest of the body, nearly a foot away.
Studies determined that the individual was a male in his 40s or 50s at the time of his death, and he had been deliberately buried facedown. The legs of the body may also have been dislocated.
The man’s remains showed signs of heavy physical labor, particularly on the lower half and the vertebrae. He died due to injuries to the skull.
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The unusual burial indicated that the individual was considered unfit for society when he was alive, so his burial was a form of punishment.
During that time, the widespread fear of supernatural beings led people to believe that those who defied the cultural norms were vampires who could rise again after death.
As a result, certain measures were taken to ensure that this would not happen. In medieval Europe, people believed that a person’s soul did not pass on to the afterlife immediately once the body died. Instead, the soul departed only when the body had rotted away 40 days later.
However, if the person was a sinner or suffered a violent death, their body would not decompose and would rise from the grave as a vampire.
Cutting off the head and weighing down the body with stones were some of the more popular methods of keeping a vampire contained. Many other burials from medieval Europe shared similar features.
“A characteristic of vampires is their near indestructibility, and thus precautions were taken to prevent the transformation of the recently deceased into vampires,” wrote the authors of the study.
“The most common way to do this was to destroy the corpse of those thought to be most at risk of becoming a vampire, specifically by driving a stake through the corpse’s heart. Based on superstition, other methods were also viable, including: burning the corpse, beheading the corpse and then burying the head between the feet or legs, behind the buttocks, or away from the body.”
The study was published in Military Orders and Their Heritage.
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