When it rains, it pours

Today novitel reports that another 'vampire skeleton' has been found, this time in central Bulgaria. I suppose it's safe to say that by now every self respecting Bulgarian archaeologist seems to be jumping the vampire band wagon. To what extent we can really talk about vampires or other kinds of revenants is pretty difficult to say, cf. also bshistorian's recent comments, but so far I have decided to just mention the news as they are reported from Bulgaria:

New centuries-old skeleton of a man who has been buried with a rite to prevent him from becoming a vampire has been found in central Bulgaria.

The skeleton is nailed to the ground with four metal brackets and burning coals were placed over the tomb, according to a report of the largest private TV channel bTV.

The skeleton is of a man about 30 years of age, and it is yet to be dated, but Bulgaria's top archeologist, Nikolay Ovcharov, is quoted saying it is several centuries-old.

Ovcharov explains that the man has not been a vampire, but was buried with a pagan rite to prevent him from turning into one after the death.

The skeleton was found during archeological digs in a monastery near the central city of Veliko Tarnovo, where 10 years ago Ovcharov's team came upon a very similar find.

The 'Vampire' is in Sofia

No day without news of the vampire skeletons from Bulgaria, this time from the Focus Information Agency, stating that The Vampire is now in Sofia:

Sofia. “Under stepped-up security measures, and to the relief of the old ladies from the coastal town of Sozopol, the skeleton of the vampire has been transported from Sozopol to the National Museum of History in Sofia on Sunday,” museum’s director Bozhidar Dimitrov announced for FOCUS News Agency.
“Here the skeleton will be analysed and studied by the prominent anthropologist, Professor Yordan Yordanov. It has been ‘furnished’ with a glass box. Probably visitors will have the chance to see this strange proof to the beliefs and superstitions of our ancestors next weekend,” Dimitrov added.
“Those, who are afraid that the vampire will bring bad luck to Sofia and Sofia citizens, should feel calm as it has been neutralised by the iron stake yet in the Middle Ages. In this sense, it is less dangerous than a utilised shell,” Bozhidar Dimitrov remarked.

According to novinite.com, 'BBC and Russia's RTV have already expressed their interest in filming documentaries on Bulgaria's "vampire" skeletons, according to local media.'

The Darkest Sources of Bram Stoker

I recently received a copy of Neil R. Storey's book The Dracula Secrets: Jack the Ripper and the Darkest Sources of Bram Stoker (The History Press, 303 pages, hardcover, RRP £20), and although I have no far only dipped into it here and there, I can fairly easily say that this contains nothing of particular interest with regards to vampires, but it will no doubt be of interest to the Dracula, Bram Stoker or Jack the Ripper buff.

Storey, an award-winning historian, lecturer and author of many books, aims to link 'the Whitechapel vampire', i.e. Jack the Ripper, with Dracula, as one of Stoker's sources of inspiration. As I have so far not read the entire book, I am unable to say how successful he is in establishing this connection, but the book certainly contains a wealth of information on Stoker and some about the Ripper. It is very nicely illustrated, and among the appendices is the list of items from Stoker's library that was auctioned off at Sotheby's in 1913, including the notes for Dracula that a certain Mr. Drake purchased for the sum of £2 2s!

Another appendix is taken from the 1887 edition of Baedecker's Southern Germany and Austria, Including Hungary and Transylvania. Handbook for Travellers, detailing the railway trip from Klausenburg (Cluj) to Bistritz  (Bistriţa).

From Reiseführer durch Rumänien published in Bucharest in 1932.

A friend of mine gave me a copy of Jack the Ripper: The Casebook by Richard Jones some time ago. This is an unusual book about the crimes of the Ripper, because it contains pockets with 18 items of removable facsimile documents and memorabilia. If you happen to be interested in doing some armchair sleuthing, you might want to consider getting hold of this book.

Bulgaria: the new vampire country?

The growing international interest in the archaeological find of 'vampire skeletons' in Sozopol in Bulgaria now make the Bulgarians point to other 'vampire' locations, hoping that they may attract some 'vampire tourism'. See the video in this news story, and those below. Director of National Museum of History, Bozhidar Dimitrov, even tries to appropriate Dracula by quoting Elizabeth Kostova, author of the Dracula novel The Historian, claiming that Dracula was originally Bulgarian.

Videos from Sozopol

Footage from Sozopol via Zona Burgas, where you can also see a video about Ukrainian journalists visiting the site. More footage in an interview with Bozhidar Dimitrov on Bulgarian National Television.

Something for your home?

Making it onto BBC's web site, Tennants Auctioneers in North Yorkshire, UK, is auctioneering this kit off on June 22:

'One piece in particular, (drawing attention from both the UK and America) is an unusual 19th century vampire slaying kit, which almost complete and in good condition, can be dated to after Bram Stoker wrote the famous Dracula novel, which popularised the vampire character and possibly started the trend of vampire slaying kits. The mahogany casket, complete with percussion cap pistol, steel bullet mould, mallet and stakes, Rosary beads, glass bottles, prayer book dated 1857 and crucifix, which was found in the cellar of the vendors deceased uncle, is in good condition and expected to make £1500-2000. It will certainly be exciting to see where the casket ends up; perhaps with many scenes of Bram Stokers novel being set in the Yorkshire seaside town of Whitby, the vampire slaying kit might only make a short journey after the sale. With live internet bidding on the day however, and already genuine international interest, it could end up overseas!.'

These kits have been the subject of discussion on various web sites and blogs, and a whole article was devoted to them in a recent issue of The Fortean Times. Here Jonathan Ferguson writes that the standing record for one of these kits is no less than $26,400! The first one on auction apparently turned up in 1994 at Sotheby's. Fetching $12,000, it probably inspired others to create similar faux kits. Although fake, there are no doubt a number of people out there who would like to have this kind of item. It would certainly inspire some interesting discussions at any party...

Related links: A list of vampire killing kits, Jonathan Ferguson's blog, and one of a number of posts on the subject on The Vampirologist blog.

Thanks to Mr. Ranft for notifying me of this news story.

A Bulgarian 'vampire skeleton' close up

From the Bulgarian Standart web site.

Cf. the news from the National Museum of History, Sofia.

Another twist on Vampire Tourism

Vampire tourism is a term that I have used several times over the years on this blog, so it is curious to find it in the news: 'Vampire' tourism in Bulgaria? reports that 'the considerable interest from abroad (in the Bulgarian 'vampire' skeletons discovered in Sozopol) can prove to be a perfect opportunity for popularizing Bulgaria's traditional folklore and its bizarre creatures and tales around the world.

Who knows, maybe a movie based on Bulgarian folklore can pour some fresh blood into the repetitive vampire film industry (pun not intended)?

Bulgarian tour operators have been quoted saying that the interest has been huge and Germans, Brits and Russians have already inquired about "vampire vacations" in Sozopol.

I do not want to discourage potential tourists, but travelling all the way to Bulgaria to see a skeleton pierced with an iron rod feels like a lame idea.

Firstly, Bulgaria has much more fascinating stuff to offer as a tourist destination, and secondly, vampires are truly great, but they belong to fiction. Looking at perfectly normal skeletons placed in a museum is not the point.'

Another news story, Vampire Hype to Boost Bulgaria's Tourism, provides some more insights to the archaeological find in Sozopol - and there is even a Venetian connection:

'People on three continents are excited about Bulgarian vampires in the wake of local archeologists claiming to have found a vampire skeleton in the Black Sea town of Sozopol.

The skeleton was the one of a buried man with an iron stick in his chest. He was buried over 700 years ago and was stabbed multiple times in the chest and the stomach, as his contemporaries feared that he would raise from the dead as a vampire, National History Museum Director, Bozhidar Dimitrov, told local media.

The Bulgarian Standard daily, which published a series of articles on the discovery, reports Thursday that media in the US, Europe and Asia have all broken the news in the press and in online editions.

The story found its place in two articles of the most-read tabloid in the world – The Daily Mail, in the Washington Post, BBC, and a number of Russian media.

Meanwhile, Bulgarian tour operators are quoted saying that the interest has been huge and Germans and Brits have already inquired about "vampire vacations" in Sozopol. There is an expected increase of visits from the US and Russia as well, while long lines are reported at the excavation site near the Saint Nicholas Wonderworker monastery.

Speaking for Standard, Bozhidar Dimitrov explained that the vampire's name was Krivich (The Crooked) and he was a legendary pirate, manager of the Sozopol fortress or one of his heirs.

The Crooked, as his contemporaries called him, has been a crippled, but extremely intelligent man. He outshined everyone with his knowledge about the sea, the stars and herbs. Byzantine chronicles describe how he plundered a Venetian ship. It is possible that he was declared a master of the witchcraft because of these talents, which explains the metal stake through his heart.

Experts also believe that the man may have been an intellectual and perhaps a medic, as such individuals often raised suspicions in the Middle Ages. The grave was discovered near the apse of a church, which suggests that he was an aristocrat.

According to archaeologists, this is the first time a "vampire" burial has been discovered in Sozopol.

Over 100 buried people whose corpses were stabbed to prevent them from becoming vampires have been discovered across Bulgaria over the years, according to Dimitrov.'

According to Focus, the skeletons will be on display at the National Museum of History in Sofia:

'The vampire burial unearthed in the seaside city of Sozopol will be displayed in the National Museum of History in Sofia due to the keen interest in Bulgaria and abroad, museum director Bozhidar Dimitrov told FOCUS News Agency.

The vampire will be displayed in about ten days when the special glass case in which it will be laid is ready.

On Tuesday AFP reported that archaeologists in Bulgaria unearthed two skeletons from the Middle Ages pierced through the chest with iron rods to keep them from turning into vampires.

According to pagan beliefs, people who were considered bad during their lifetimes might turn into vampires after death unless stabbed in the chest with an iron or wooden rod before being buried.

"These two skeletons stabbed with rods illustrate a practice which was common in some Bulgarian villages up until the first decade of the 20th century," national history museum chief Bozhidar Dimitrov said after the recent find in the Black Sea town of Sozopol.

People believed the rod would also pin the dead into their graves to prevent them from leaving at midnight and terrorizing the living, the historian explained.

The practice was common, Dimitrov added, saying some 100 similar burials had already been found in Bulgaria.

Archaeologist Petar Balabanov, who in 2004 unearthed six nailed-down skeletons at a site near the eastern town of Debelt, said the pagan rite was also practiced in neighboring Serbia and other Balkan countries.'

Go here to read various posts about 'vampire tourism'.

The darker sides of Venetian history

The brilliant German magazine Der Spiegel Geschichte has just published an issue that explores various aspects of the history of Venice. Of particular relevance to the subject of this blog is a four page article about the plague that ravaged the city several times, Die ganze Stadt ein Grab. The supposed 'vampire' with a brick in its mouth found in the Lazaretto Nuovo is also depicted, and the theory is recounted.

Another dark side of Venetian history is explored in an article on the gruesome executions that were carried out in the city. The list of contents can be found on Der Spiegel's web site.

A sudden burst of interest in 'vampire skeletons'

A news story about 'vampire skeletons' found in Bulgaria providing very little actual information, and suddenly - as the story circulated around the globe - the number of visits to this blog exploded. Apparently a lot of people were searching for information on those 'vampire skeletons' and found some of my posts on the subject, like Another 'vampire' skeleton found, Yet another Czech 'vampire' found, 'Vampire Skeletons', Revenants and vampire forensics and The Vampire Bites Back? interesting.