Creepy Witches Graveyard Discovered In Italy

vansau

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May 25, 2010
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Creepy Witches Graveyard Discovered In Italy



Double, double, toil and trouble ...

Just in time for Halloween, some real-life witches have been found over in Italy. Also appropriate for the season, the witches are dead and buried, as it turns out they were discovered in a graveyard that's suspected to have been created specifically for ladies believed to have supernatural powers.

The graveyard was found in Italy's Tuscany region, and the remains discovered therein are approximately 800-years-old. One of the sets of remains was of a woman who had seven nails driven through her jawbone. Another female skeleton was found seventeen dice, which is notable because this was "a game which women were forbidden from playing 800 years ago."

Archaeologist Alfonso Forgione, who is from L'Aquila University and is the man leading the dig, explained why these women are believed to be suspected witches from that era:

"It's a very unusual discovery and at the same time fascinating. I have never seen anything like this before. I'm convinced because of the nails found in the jaw and around the skeleton the woman was a witch.

"She was buried in bare earth, not in a coffin and she had no shroud around her either, intriguingly other nails were hammered around her to pin down her clothes.

"This indicates to me that it was an attempt to make sure the woman even though she was dead did not rise from the dead and unnerve the locals who were no doubt convinced she was a witch with evil powers.

"The second skeleton we have found was buried in a similar fashion but this time we found 17 dice around her - 17 is an unlucky number in Italy and also dice was a game that women were forbidden to play.

"The way the bodies were buried would seem to indicate some form of exorcist ritual and the remains will be examined to see if we can establish a cause of death for them."

OK, let's be honest about something here. Last week, a burial site for zombies was discovered over in Ireland. Now, we've got witches. Who wants to bet next week reveals the existence of vampires (who, y'know, eat people instead of <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/7.314020-Zombie-Skeletons-Discovered-In-Ireland>sitting around and whining while they sparkle)?

Source: <a href=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2041671/800-year-old-remains-witch-discovered-graveyard-Tuscany-Italy.html#ixzz1Z7qXE5Nh>Daily Mail

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Astoria

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Oct 25, 2010
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Ouch, I sure hope she was already dead when they did that. Pretty cool discovery though, I wonder if there's more of them.
 

KeyMaster45

Gone Gonzo
Jun 16, 2008
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Caramel Frappe said:
Also, let's not forget that we have so much to uncover in our World that I actually wouldn't be so shocked if we found big foot in China...
No, no. If Bigfoot were in China they'd have eaten him by now. *ba bum tsh*

OT: There's something to be said about the presentation in crazy medieval burials, and the often insane logic that goes into them. I mean come on nailed down so she can't rise from the grave and torment people a la Scooby-Doo? Then again she'd have never been caught if it weren't for those meddling kids.
 

Blow_Pop

Supreme Evil Overlord
Jan 21, 2009
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Enkidu88 said:
Astoria said:
Ouch, I sure hope she was already dead when they did that
I doubt it. Women suspected to be witches weren't exactly treated humanely.
I second that. Historically if you were a woman and found to be a "witch"(i'm going to use that term loosely here since a lot of them weren't) were treated very poorly. Though I would love to fly to Italy and visit. Though that may just be because I am very morbid and enjoy things of the nature(could also explain the joy I get in my job)
 

vxicepickxv

Slayer of Bothan Spies
Sep 28, 2008
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Enkidu88 said:
Astoria said:
Ouch, I sure hope she was already dead when they did that
I doubt it. Women suspected to be witches weren't exactly treated humanely.
It was 1200 AD, you didn't have to add the words suspected to be witches to that sentence.

Back then women weren't treated humanely.
 

Formica Archonis

Anonymous Source
Nov 13, 2009
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vansau said:
The graveyard was found in Italy's Tuscany region, and the remains discovered therein are approximately 800-years-old.
Ah, the thirteenth century. What a time to be living! Witness such holy events as:

1) The Crusades, including the Albigensian Crusade where 20,000+ men, women, and children were maimed, tortured, and butchered for the sin of acting holier than the priesthood was acting. (Which legendarily gave birth to an ancestor of the phrase "Kill 'em all and let God sort them out". Look it up: "Caedite eos. Novit enim Dominus qui sunt eius.")

2) The Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor eternally at each other's throats, with places like Tuscany as the battlegrounds.

3) The Dominicans busy getting the early Inquisitions underway.

An enlightened time to be sure.:/
 

SirCannonFodder

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Nov 23, 2007
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vansau said:
OK, let's be honest about something here. Last week, a burial site for zombies was discovered over in Ireland. Now, we've got witches. Who wants to bet next week reveals the existence of vampires (who, y'know, eat people instead of <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/7.314020-Zombie-Skeletons-Discovered-In-Ireland>sitting around and whining while they sparkle)?
Got [http://news.sky.com/home/world-news/article/15240705] you covered [http://www.livescience.com/3374-medieval-vampire-skull.html]
 

SinisterGehe

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Enkidu88 said:
Astoria said:
Ouch, I sure hope she was already dead when they did that
I doubt it. Women suspected to be witches weren't exactly treated humanely.
Agreed. What I know from witch hunt is that (Specially hunt by the catholic church in medieval times), soon as they were caught they were kept in the end of a 3 meters long stick and bound by cast iron shackles that had spikes inside the collar. Since they believed that touching a witch cursed a painful death for you. So I think that it was bigger relief for them to die than to stay alive and get tortured, even if the death was painful.

But no one deserves anything like that. This is evidence of humanity's stupidity in the past. sad thing is that humanity hasn't grown smarter, the focus of the hatred has just changed.

Oh well. I hope they had a good life before they got killed because of stupidity.
 
Feb 13, 2008
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Oh Mike....

I was really enjoying this story and then you had to put the source underneath it.

Now I'm going to have to look up what the truth is.

Stupid tabloids.
 

Sneaky-Pie

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Sep 22, 2008
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Oddly enough, there are records of an increase of newts at the time. However, most of them got better so sufficient evidence is lacking.
 

rayen020

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May 20, 2009
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Who wants to bet next week reveals the existence of vampires
well i guess it can be me.and this one isn't an archeological dig find. this is a hollywood movie star.

I present Nicholas cage; Vampire. [http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/217176/20110920/nicolas-cage-vampire-photo.htm]
 
May 5, 2010
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aprilmarie said:
I second that. Historically if you were a woman and found to be a "witch"(i'm going to use that term loosely here since a lot of them weren't)...
Um...Are you saying that some of them WERE?
 

Blow_Pop

Supreme Evil Overlord
Jan 21, 2009
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Frozen Donkey Wheel2 said:
aprilmarie said:
I second that. Historically if you were a woman and found to be a "witch"(i'm going to use that term loosely here since a lot of them weren't)...
Um...Are you saying that some of them WERE?
I'm saying its possible. People associate different ideals as being a witch. Such as, it was considered witchcraft if a woman was thrown into a lake and didn't drown......Is that actual witchcraft? No. It has to do with how buoyant she is....And that's more a scientific issue than witchcraft. There are also the Pagan religions that have their form of witchcraft......so..........
 

StrixMaxima

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Sep 8, 2008
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An interesting story, but hardly something new. There have been several discoveries involving corpses with objects in their mouths, usually stakes or bricks (specially in Italy), as some sort of remedy against vampirism or witchcraft.

In other parts of Europe, this was also practiced, using coins, weapons, burying the corpse on his belly (so if he started digging, he would end up among the Mole People), etc, etc.

History is much more interesting that people give it credit for, and in particular the Middle Ages. What a crazy time to live.
 

shadyh8er

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Apr 28, 2010
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Ser Imp said:
There's only one way to be sure:
Does she weigh the same as a duck?
You! Two dollars! In the jar! NOW!



OT: Nails in the jaw? I'm interested to see what the rationale behind that is.