Just days shy of Halloween, archaeologists in Bulgaria have made a fitting discovery: a skeleton “vampire” grave—metal stake in its chest and all.
Professor and archeologist Nikolai Ovcharov found the creepy burial during excavations at the ruins of the ancient Thracian city of Perperikon, in southern Bulgaria, close to the border of Greece. Referred to as the “Bulgarian Indiana Jones,” Ovcharov has dedicated his life to unearthing mysteries of ancient civilizations.
“We have no doubts that once again we’re seeing an anti-vampire ritual being carried out," Ovcharov told The Telegraph. In an attempt to prevent “bad” people from rising from their graves and haunting the living – The Walking Dead style - stakes were driven through their corpses, according to Ovcharov. "The ploughshare weighs almost two pounds and is dug into the body into a broken shoulder bone. You can clearly see how the collarbone has literally popped out." …show more content…
The Medieval “vampire” grave is one of two unusual burials recently unearthed by Ovcharov and team at Perperikon, a city inhabited since 5,000 BC but only discovered 20 years ago. Reported by Bulgarian newspaper 24 Hours, the second burial contained a mother and child whose bodies had been laid out to resemble an image of the Virgin Mary and child. Ovcharov noted this sort of ritual burial was used as a way to ward off the plague, which had begun to afflict Medieval populations.
He added that he believed both graves are estimated to date back to the first half of the 13th
Professor and archeologist Nikolai Ovcharov found the creepy burial during excavations at the ruins of the ancient Thracian city of Perperikon, in southern Bulgaria, close to the border of Greece. Referred to as the “Bulgarian Indiana Jones,” Ovcharov has dedicated his life to unearthing mysteries of ancient civilizations.
“We have no doubts that once again we’re seeing an anti-vampire ritual being carried out," Ovcharov told The Telegraph. In an attempt to prevent “bad” people from rising from their graves and haunting the living – The Walking Dead style - stakes were driven through their corpses, according to Ovcharov. "The ploughshare weighs almost two pounds and is dug into the body into a broken shoulder bone. You can clearly see how the collarbone has literally popped out." …show more content…
The Medieval “vampire” grave is one of two unusual burials recently unearthed by Ovcharov and team at Perperikon, a city inhabited since 5,000 BC but only discovered 20 years ago. Reported by Bulgarian newspaper 24 Hours, the second burial contained a mother and child whose bodies had been laid out to resemble an image of the Virgin Mary and child. Ovcharov noted this sort of ritual burial was used as a way to ward off the plague, which had begun to afflict Medieval populations.
He added that he believed both graves are estimated to date back to the first half of the 13th