Cesky Krumlow is located in modern day the Czech Republic, near the border with Austria on the territory that in the Middle Ages was known as Bohemia.
The settlement fueled the curiosity of the archeologists because the small village that developed around the sumptuous castle that dominates the region from an incredible platform, has remained intact to the day.
In 2000 when some reconstruction was going on in the Plesivecka Street in Cesky Krumlov, a number of graves was found that were part of one of the older cemeteries that dated back from the 17th or 18th century.
The excavations uncovered a total of 11 skeletons but 3 in particular sparked the interest of the team because of the positioning of the bodies and the orientation of the graves themselves; they were on the N-S axe, rather that the E-V one as it is common in the Christian burial rituals [the orientation that the other 8 shared].
One of the skeletons had the head severed from the rest of the carcass and placed in between the legs and another corpse was pinned to the ground using heavy stones [they were placed on the legs, arms and chest – stones were located even in the mouth].
At a first glance the third skeleton may have seamed intact, but upon closed inspection it was found that it had traces of trauma on the chest – signs of fractures on the ribs [produced by a sharp object].
All these details are consistent with anti-vampire rituals practiced in the Middle Ages to prevent the dead from returning from the grave:
– the first skeleton is that of a man that was decapitated;
– the second skeleton was of a man placed in his tomb and covered with stones to keep him from exiting it; the little ones were to keep him from chewing;
– because his stern was punctured we can safely presume that the heart was the objective of that stake [sharp object].
Using carbon dating methods the team pinned down a more exact date for the bodies, between 1730 and 1750.
By analyzing the records found at the castle we find that in the middle of the 18th century the region was reigned by the von Schwarzenberg family [in 1741 we place the death for princess Eleonore Amalia von Schwarzenberg]
In that timeframe they were able to find records for 3 deaths by suicide.
The Church claims that those that take their own lives give up their shot at redemption and are damned not to find piece… suicide is one of the ways to become a vampire!
It`s a long shot but it`s possible that the 3 skeletons that suffered mutilation for suspected vampirism are those of Paul Haas, Phillip Bauler and a young man that poisoned himself.
