The excavation of a headless child’s skeleton believed to be linked to vampire folklore reveals burial customs aimed at preventing the dead from rising in the Middle Ages.
While tending to the garden at a church complex in Poland, gardeners discovered the skeleton of a frail child associated with vampire legends, as reported by Interesting Engineering on September 15. Located around the garden’s fence, the remains of the headless child were obstructed by large stones. Researchers found no historical records indicating the presence of a cemetery.
The skeleton of a boy found at the foundation of the Christianity Uniate bishop’s Palace in Chelm. (Photo: Lubelski Wojewódzki Konserwator Zabytków)
Dr. Stanislaw Golub, an archaeologist from the Lublin conservation agency, began excavating and confirmed the careful treatment of one of the two bodies dating back to the 13th century to rule out the possibility of the dead rising from their graves. The new findings shed light on a burial practice in medieval Poland as well as the origins of vampire folklore. Notably, the child’s remains were discovered during renovation work at the Christianity Uniate Bishop’s Palace in Chelm, a significant historical and religious site from the Middle Ages.
The provincial monument protection agency in Chelm indicated that the child may have suffered from tuberculosis. According to Dr. Stanisław Gołub, the archaeologist overseeing the excavation, the grave clearly exhibited signs of a practice aimed at preventing vampires. In the burial ritual, the child’s skull was placed face down to ensure the deceased would not return to life, and heavy stones were placed on the boy’s body to prevent evil spirits from taking hold.
Similar to other vampire graves, the anonymous grave on the church grounds displayed all the characteristic signs, including the use of plaster and an east-west orientation, allowing archaeologists to determine that the grave belonged to the medieval period aimed at preventing vampires from threatening the local population.
The research team hopes to gain further insights into the life and customs of that era with this newly discovered skeleton. Increasing evidence suggests that fears surrounding non-existent vampires were widespread.
