A 17th-century child’s remains were found padlocked to a grave in Poland – an act that is thought to have been done to prevent the child from rising from the dead.
Archaeologists discovered the body of a six- to seven-year-old buried facedown with a triangular iron padlock under its foot.
It is believed that the body, found in the northern village of Pien, was buried facedown and padlocked to the grave due to ancient supernatural beliefs in vampires.
The discovery was made at the same site where it was reported a year ago that the remains of a woman were found with a sickle around her neck and a triangular padlock on her foot.
The positioning of the sharp metal blade was also believed to be a measure to prevent her from rising from the dead.
Professor Dariusz Polinski, a researcher on medieval burials at Nicolas Copernicus University in Torun, said: “This is a cemetery for rejected people, who were certainly feared after death, and perhaps also during life… who were suspected of having contacts with unclean forces, people who also behaved differently in some way.”
The child was likely buried facedown to prevent it from sitting up and leaving the grave to feed on living people, he added.
“These are people who, if it was done intentionally, were afraid of… contact with these people because they might bite, drink blood,” said Prof Polinski.
The child’s bones date back to a time when ghosts, zombies, and other supernatural entities were believed to be as real as humans.
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At some point after the burial, the grave was desecrated and all the child’s bones were removed except for the legs.
To prevent the undead from rising after burials, Prof Polinski added: “There were also a large number of graves with stones… which were also supposed to protect against the deceased, placed