400 years ago, she was still feared even after her death — archaeologists have examined an unusual grave in Poland

Archaeologists have now, for the first time, examined this burial site in detail using radiocarbon dating, DNA analysis, isotope analysis and analysis of the chemical composition of the artefacts. One of the most intriguing findings is that the grave was probably reopened before the body had completely decomposed.

Details

Burial No. 75 was discovered in 2022. The woman was approximately 17–19 years old at the time of her death, and she was most likely buried in the mid-17th century.

The ring on her toe, according to the researchers, may have been part of the original burial. The situation with the sickle is more complex. Disturbances in the soil and the position of the bones suggest that the grave was opened some time after the burial, part of the body was moved, and only then was the iron blade placed across the neck.

Such actions are associated with apotropaic, or protective, rituals. In Central and Eastern Europe, there were beliefs about ‘dangerous dead’ who could return and harm the living. Locks, sickles, stones and other objects were used to symbolically or physically ‘restrain’ the deceased in the grave.

However, scholars do not know why this particular woman might have been considered dangerous. The cause of her death has also not been established.

Judging by her social status, she was probably not poor. Fragments of an expensive silk headdress, featuring threads of silver and gilded silver, were found near her skull.

Analysis of her teeth showed that the woman grew up in the Pnya area. Her mitochondrial lineage, J1c2c1, is linked to populations in northern and western Europe, but this does not mean that she herself was a migrant from Scandinavia.

Another mystery is the unusually high concentration of copper in the palate and neck regions. It is possible that, shortly before her death or during the burial rite, an object or substance containing copper was placed in her mouth or nose. Researchers have not yet been able to determine exactly what this was.

Why this is important

The grave first came to public attention four years ago due to the striking combination of a sickle and a lock. The new study is significant in that it allows us to move away from the image of a ‘vampire burial’ towards a more cautious reconstruction of the actual ritual.

Of particular interest is the possibility that the grave was re-exhumed. If this interpretation is correct, attitudes towards the woman may have changed after the funeral: perhaps some subsequent misfortune, illness or other crisis led local residents to link what was happening to the deceased.

But it is impossible to prove such a scenario. Archaeology records the actions — the lock, the sickle, the disturbance of the grave — whilst the motives of 17th-century people must be reconstructed indirectly.

Therefore, researchers prefer to speak not of a ‘proven vampire’, but of an unusual burial involving probable anti-demonic practices.

Source

Study:“A unique, non-normative burial of a young adult female from a 17th-century cemetery in Pień, north-central Poland. A multidisciplinary approach”.

Authors: Dariusz Poliński et al.

Journal: Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2026.