Apparently, archaeologists believe they’ve unearthed some “vampire graves” in Gliwice, Poland. The tombs were discovered in an area of land normally dotted by WWII graves. All of the bodies discovered in the graves were decapitated. The skulls were found on top of the skeleton’s legs.
In medieval times, this ritualized execution and burial method was a common practice to prevent the dead from rising. Vampires were widely believed in and feared in Europe around this time, and it was believed that with the head separated from the body, a vampire could not rise up after death. The graves are hard to date exactly as they were discovered without any clothing, adornments or other possessions.
Vampires were blamed for all kinds of tragedies and ill fortunes, from natural disasters to sudden and unexpected deaths. The belief may also have come about because of strange but natural effects of decomposition on a body. For example, a corpse sealed in a coffin might take much longer to decay. However, internal decomposition can cause bloating that forces blood into the mouth and makes it look like a dead body just gorged on human blood. (Gross!)
