CASE REPORT

ODONTOLOGY; ANTHROPOLOGY

Emilio Nuzzolese,1 D.D.S., Ph.D. and Matteo Borrini,2 M.S.

Forensic Approach to an ArchaeologicalCasework of ‘‘Vampire’’ Skeletal Remains inVenice: Odontological and AnthropologicalProspectus*

ABSTRACT: During the years 2006–2007, the Archeological Superintendent of Veneto (Italy) promoted a research project on mass graveslocated on Nuovo Lazzaretto in Venice, where the corpses of plague deaths were buried during the 16th and 17th centuries. The burials were of dif-ferent stages and are believed to be the remains of plague victims from the numerous outbreaks of pestilence, which occurred between the 15th and17th centuries. Among the fragmented and commingled human bones, an unusual burial was found. The body was laid supine, with the top half ofthe thorax intact, arms parallel to the rachis axis, the articulations were anatomically unaltered. Both the skull morphology and the dimensions of thecaput omeris suggest the body was a woman. A brick of moderate size was found inside the oral cavity, keeping the mandible wide open. The datacollected by the anthropologist were used to generate a taphonomic profile, which precluded the positioning of the brick being accidental. Likewise,the probability of the brick having come from the surrounding burial sediment was rejected, as the only other inclusions found were bone fragmentsfrom previous burials in the same area. The data collected by the odontologist were employed for age estimation and radiological dental assessment.The forensic profile was based conceptually on the ‘‘circumstances of death’’ and concluded that the positioning of the brick was intentional, andattributed to a symbolic burial ritual. This ritual confirms the intimate belief held at those times, between the plague and the mythological characterof the vampire.

KEYWORDS: forensic science, forensic odontology, forensic anthropology, forensic radiology, vampirism, forensic archaeology

Paleopathological examination of skeletal remains of suspected‘‘vampires’’ coming from ancient sites may shed light on reasonsfor a vampire folk belief and for the ways in which these corpseswere treated in terms of burial rites. To this end, taphonomy playsan important role here (1,2).

Belief in the vampire myth is widespread throughout the world.Greece has a long tradition of vampires. Examples of the Greek‘‘undead’’ date back to the ancient world with creatures, such asEfialtae, Striges, Lamiae, Empoussai, Epopidae, Yello, and Mormo.In Homer’s Odyssey, it is clearly stated that the dead like drinkingblood (3). There also existed special festivals in the honor of thedead, the Anthesteria and in Roman times, the Lemuria. In Byzan-tium, Slavic influence, in conjunction with the precepts of theGreek Orthodox Church, form the legend of a Greek vampire spe-cies called ‘‘Vrykolakas,’’ the Slavic word for werewolf. The wordbecame directly associated with vampires out of the belief that allwerewolves would be vampires after death (3,4). The presence ofvampires also exists in medieval Greek texts, novels, manuscripts,ecclesiastical laws, exorcisms, and folk songs (5). Forensic pathol-ogy proposes that most, if not all, of the beliefs surrounding the‘‘vampire’’ can be explained in terms of folk misconceptions basedon the processes of decomposition of the cadaver after death.

Finally, in the clinical–pathological record, conditions producingsymptoms that are similar to vampiric attributes include rabies,anthrax, photosensitivity, and serious psychological disorders (5–8).Against the popular misconception that nails and hair keep growingafter death, it is a consequence of a back shrinkage of the skin.Also swelling, which sometimes is extreme, is the main reasonwhy the cadaver is pinned, tied, or weighed down in its grave, andthe ‘‘vampire’’ corpse is often killed by piercing. The revenant can-not cross the water because, as a result of extreme swelling, thebody will emerge and float (1).

Background

During the years 2006–2007, the Archeological Superintendentof Veneto (Italy) promoted research project on mass graves locatedon Nuovo Lazzaretto in Venice, where the corpses of plague deathswere buried during the 16th and 17th centuries.

The project was part of a summer work camp by Archeoclub(Venice Section) and was carried out with sponsorship of the Inter-national Centre of Archaeological Research (CIRA) and the RadixProject ‘‘Venetian archaeological sites to be saved,’’ with the assis-tance of La Spezia Archaeological Group (G.A.SP.)

The excavation area is located in a cemetery site positionedaround an ancient wall built after a health and quarantine decree ofthe Republic Senate dated July 8, 1468 meaning to establish a bul-wark against epidemics.

At the excavation site, the recovery stage was performed apply-ing traditional archaeological techniques along with modern

1Viale JF Kennedy 77, 70124 Bari, Italy.2Via Del Mattone 17 ⁄ A, 19131 Cadimare (SP), Italy.*Presented at the 61st Annual Meeting of the American Academy of

Forensic Sciences, February 16–21, 2009, in Denver, CO.Received 3 June 2009; and in revised form 21 July 2009; accepted 15

Aug. 2009.

J Forensic Sci, November 2010, Vol. 55, No. 6doi: 10.1111/j.1556-4029.2010.01525.x

Available online at: onlinelibrary.wiley.com

1634 � 2010 American Academy of Forensic Sciences

forensic archaeology ⁄ anthropology protocols in order to improveaccuracy and data collection.

Two stratigraphic macro-units were discovered: one unit con-tained mixed disjointed skeletal remains with ancient postmortemfragmentation and sharp ⁄ blunt breaks; the other unit containedhuman remains of primary deposition, generally showing no post-burial disturbance.

The stratigraphic data and the finding of devotional medalscoined on the 1600 Jubilee allowed pinpointing of the intact bodiesto the 17th century plague. Those corpses were buried by digginginto previous graves that may be dated to the previous Venetianplague in 1576.

Archaeological and Anthropological Considerations

The taphonomic evaluation allowed the reconstruction of the var-ious decomposition phases of each corpse as well as the under-standing of the stratigraphical seriation because of piling of bodiesduring burial and its relevance to shrouds, cloths used to wrap abody for burial. Sharp ⁄ blunt breaks on the bones can be explainedby the work of gravediggers with their spades. Within these twomacro-stratigraphic units (16th and 17th centuries), we can alsospot different phases of body depositions, with postburial distur-bances and intersection of skeletons.

Among the burials that have been studied using this approach,there is a body that appears as particularly interesting: the skeletonis preserved from half the chest to the skull because it was cut atthe humeral diaphyses when later graves were dug (Fig. 1).

The individual (classified as number ID 6), currently still underanalysis, is at the moment identified as an adult woman by the gen-eral skull morphology and caput humeris size (9). The skeletonwas interred supine in a simple burial pit (covered space), with herarms parallel to the rachis axis; the anatomical relationshipsbetween bones are well preserved, all joints persist in an anatomi-cal order except for a slight verticalization of the left claviclebecause of a wall effect produced by a shroud (which also causedsmall slumping and splaying of ribs).

The distinctiveness of the ID 6 grave is that a moderate-sizepiece of brick is inside the oral cavity, keeping the mandible wide

open while still articulated in the glenoid cavity (Figs 2 and 3). Athanatological and taphonomic profile rules out postmortem dis-placement of bones (10) and a subsequent collapse of the objectinside the oral cavity. Also, it is highly unlikely that pieces ofbricks were part of the sediments that were used to fill the burial,because the only ‘‘substantial’’ elements in the soil are bone frag-ments related to more ancient depositions, destroyed by the contin-uous activities in the graveyard.

As the insertion of the brick into the dead woman’s mouth mustbe considered intentional, this practice probably had such a sym-bolic and ritual value, that the sextons working in the graveyardduring the plague handled the corpse that way, despite the dangerof infection.

FIG. 1—Brick found in the oral cavity.

(a)

(b)

FIG. 2—(a) The skull as it appeared in the excavation site with brickrepositioned in the oral cavity. (b) Lateral view.

NUZZOLESE AND BORRINI • ‘‘VAMPIRE’’ SKELETAL REMAINS 1635

Odontological Study

The material was analyzed macroscopically before and after thesediment removal (Fig. 3) in the Museum of Prehistory in Florence,where the remains and skull are temporarily stored. Found teethwere repositioned finding the right alveolus. The macroscopic anal-ysis revealed almost complete arches, no dental treatments, a highdegree of abrasion of occlusal surfaces, lack of enamel hypoplasticdefects, and inferior incisors lost postmortem. Both arches under-went digital photographs and periapical radiological imaging usingNomad X-Ray portable device (Aribex Inc., Orem, UT) and Radio-videography sensor (Trophy, Vincennes, France) connected to acomputer, with 0.05-sec exposure time and 68 Kv (Fig. 4). Dentalwear, which is widely used in anthropology, could not be a reliablemethod for age estimation. Age assessment method proposed byCameriere et al. was employed (11–13). This method uses theapposition of secondary dentine that is proven to be reliable,regardless of the historical period of the specimen, and particularlysuitable for adults individuals. The canines periapical X-ray images(Fig. 5) were employed together with Adobe Photoshop to determi-nate the area of the pulp chamber of the canine and its entire areathus applying the regression formulae to evaluate chronological ageas suggested by Cameriere et al. (11–13). Using this method, weobtained an estimated age of 61 € 5 years.

The dental analysis revealed the individuals did not suffer anysustained periods of childhood stress from malnutrition or disease.

Conclusion

We assume that during the digging of a hole in the ground for aperson who had just died of the plague, the gravediggers cut offthe ID 6 deposition. They noticed the shroud (its presence is sug-gested by the verticalization of the clavicle) and a hole, which cor-responded with the mouth. As the body appeared as quite intact,they probably recognized in that body the so-called vampire,responsible for plague by chewing her shroud. As a consequence,they inserted a brick in her mouth. The sequence of those events

FIG. 4—Nomad X-ray portable device combined with a sensor connectedto a notebook, while examining the skull, stored in the Museum of Prehis-tory in Florence.

(a)

(b)

FIG. 3—(a) Photographs of the oral cavity area: occlusal upper view. (b)Occlusal lower view.

FIG. 5—Periapical X-ray image of upper right canine for Cameriereet al’s. age estimation method.

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(time since death) can be deduced by the lack of alteration on theskeleton joints, so that we can suppose that the gravediggers dealtwith the corpse when it was not disjointed yet. The insertion of thebrick into the mouth at the time of the primary deposition can beruled out because we have no reference, even folkloric, for such apractice in that historical and cultural context.

It is not strange that superstitions concerning vampires werewidespread in the 16th to 17th centuries even in a ‘‘cosmopolitan’’and evolved city like Venice. It is surprising, however, that thisexorcism ritual has been clearly recognized in an archaeologicalcontext: the ID 6 grave could well be the first ‘‘vampire’’ burialarchaeologically attested and studied by a forensic odontologicaland anthropological approach.

Final Remarks

Forensic science is a fast-evolving cluster of applied disciplinesthat operate independently as well as interdisciplinarly. Fields likeanthropology and odontology develop and expand incorporatingnew methods and theories. As a result, the boundaries betweenforensic science disciplines become blurred allowing a multidisci-plinary involvement and approach, especially when skulls areinvolved.

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Additional information and reprint requests:Matteo Borrini, M.S.Via del Mattone 17 ⁄ a19131 Cadimare (SP)ItalyE-mail: matteo.borrini@gmail.com

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