Here's a real tale from the crypt: vampire graves have been spotted in many different places in Poland, such as Drawsko. But before you even think this can be the closest we'll ever mimic all those vampire movies, know that these are less fictional sounding as you'd like to believe.
For many centuries, the idea of vampires living in the midst has been going on in Eastern Europe especially in the Slavic countries like Poland. Stories about how they suck blood and rise from the dead have then been passed on from generations particularly to those who live in the rural areas.
These so-called vampires are so dangerous they have their own place when they die. One of these burial sites have been discovered last year.
A team of archaeologists unearthed more than 55 different people in the same area where 6 vampires are also found. These vampires are called as such since the skeletons wore sickles and some had large stones underneath their jaws. These are part of the anti-vampire ritual to prevent them from rising after death. The sickle is meant to cut off the dead as soon as they wake up while the big stones should stop them from biting.
However, upon deeper analyses, scientists also learned that these are not mythical vampires but actually locals that may have died from a disease outbreak.
Dr. Lesley Gregoricka of University of South Alabama and her team studied the teeth or the molars of these buried individuals, comparing them with the animals in the area, using a technology called strontium isotope ratio. They then first found out that those buried and called as "vampires" are not immigrants but locals. It's a common belief that most of these vampires come from other places, only settling in a specific area to die or to kill.
Moreover, it's possible that these locals may have died from cholera, which was considered an epidemic during the 17th century, around the same time stories of vampirism became more popular.