The discovery of an unusual "vampire" burial in Croatia shows the endurance of such beliefs in eastern medieval Europe, according to researchers.
"We know that in many Slavic countries, belief in evil spirits persisted" even after the adoption of Christianity, Nataša Šarkić, an independent archaeologist who researched the find, told Live Science in an email. "The belief in vampires has been quite widespread, for sure."
As the Serbian-language website Sve o Arheologiji ("All About Archaeology") reports, the grave was excavated last year at the archaeological site of Rašaška (also spelled Račeša), about 70 miles (112 kilometers) southeast of Zagreb. The grave is thought to date from between the 13th and 16th centuries; the medieval period in this region is held to have lasted a little longer than in other parts of Europe.
The researchers first noticed large stones in the grave, which they later realized had likely fallen from a nearby wall. But their analysis revealed another surprise — the skeleton had been decapitated, with the skull placed apart from the other bones.
The studies of the skeleton determined that the body had been male; and it seemed it was deliberately twisted after death, so that his torso was facing down while other body parts were facing up. As well, the legs of the body may have been dislocated, Sarkić and her colleagues explained in the book "Military Orders and Their Heritage" (2024), which contains reports from a recent archaeological conference in Zagreb.
The unusual burial could indicate that the individual had been considered a "deviant social person" when they were alive — and was therefore suspected of having the ability to rise again after death, the researchers wrote. Healed injuries on the skeleton indicated the man had led a violent life, and the new analysis determined that he had been killed by injuries to his skull.
Vampire beliefs
This is not the first medieval vampire burial researchers have found in Croatia. Sve o Arheologiji also reported that another was found in 2024 in the Old Town district of Pakrac, a few miles northwest of the Rašaška site.
That person was buried in an ornate wooden coffin but without their head, which has never been found. Both burials illustrate the belief that a headless deceased person could not rise from their grave to harm the living. Sarkić said there had been a recent spate of discoveries of medieval vampire burials throughout Europe, especially in Poland, possibly because archaeological teams have started including bioarchaeologists who can identify such burials.
Medieval graves
The Rašaška site is part of the larger settlement of Bobare, which was owned in the early Middle Ages by the Knights Templar, a military order that took its name from Jerusalem's legendary Temple of Solomon. The land was later owned by the Knights of St. John, and by the 15th century it belonged to local nobles.
Archaeologists have been excavating buildings at the site since 2011, and they have found more than 180 graves there. The earliest may date from the 13th century, but many of them are from the 15th and 16th centuries. So far, this is the only "vampire" burial they've found at the site.
Sarkić said people buried as vampires may have displayed "sinful or violent behavior" during their lives. But "even a peaceful individual can become a potential threat if the burial rituals are not properly conducted," she said.
Medieval Croatian vampires, however, did not match the Hollywood idea of Dracula. "Unlike the aristocratic vampires known for their pale skin and slender figures, vampires from Balkan folklore were often described as bloated, long-nailed, and having a ruddy or dark complexion," Sarkić said. Such descriptions aligned with partially decomposed corpses. "Therefore, any corpse in an advanced stage of decomposition can resemble a 'vampire,'" she said.
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