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**Forensic Approach to an Archaeological Casework of “Vampire” Skeletal Remains in Venice: Odontological and Anthropological Prospectus**

## Authors

* Emilio Nuzzolese
* Matteo Borrini

## Publication History

Print: Volume 55, Issue 6 November 2010 Pages 1634-1637
First Published online: February 22, 2011

journal ISSN : 0022-1198

journal e-ISSN : 1556-4029

DOI 10.1111/j.1556-4029.2010.01525.x

Editorial history: Received 3 June 2009; and in revised form 21 July 2009; accepted 15 Aug. 2009.

***This article is modern resource:*** Even if they are 100% open access, no modern paper will ever be posted in full out of respect for the authors and researchers. Summaries and abstracts will be made available here on the Shoebox of Unhealthy Obsession along with any available links.

## Abstract

The burials were of different stages and are believed to be the remains of plague victims from the numerous outbreaks of pestilence, which occurred between the 15th and 17th centuries. Among the fragmented and commingled human bones, an unusual burial was found. The body was laid supine, with the top half of the thorax intact, arms parallel to the rachis axis, the articulations were anatomically unaltered. Both the skull morphology and the dimensions of the caput omeris suggest the body was a woman. A brick of moderate size was found inside the oral cavity, keeping the mandible wide open. The data collected 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 fragments from 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, and attributed to a symbolic burial ritual. This ritual confirms the intimate belief held at those times, between the plague and the mythological character of the vampire.

## Links to read / download

* https://www.academia.edu/1770174/Forensic\_Approach\_to\_an\_Archaeological\_Casework\_of\_Vampire\_Skeletal\_Remains\_in\_Venice\_Odontological\_and\_Anthropological\_Prospectus\_
* https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1556-4029.2010.01525.x
* https://www.infona.pl/resource/bwmeta1.element.wiley-jfo-v-55-i-6-jfo1525
* https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20707834
* https://europepmc.org/article/med/20707834
* https://www.ncjrs.gov/App/Publications/abstract.aspx?ID=254999
* https://iris.unito.it/handle/2318/1691778

## Citations

* **APA:** Nuzzolese, E., & Borrini, M. (2010). Forensic approach to an archaeological casework of “vampire” skeletal remains in Venice: Odontological and anthropological prospectus. *Journal of forensic sciences*, *55*(6), 1634-1637.
* **MLA:** Nuzzolese, Emilio, and Matteo Borrini. "Forensic approach to an archaeological casework of “vampire” skeletal remains in Venice: Odontological and anthropological prospectus." *Journal of forensic sciences* 55.6 (2010): 1634-1637.
* **Chicago:** Nuzzolese, Emilio, and Matteo Borrini. "Forensic approach to an archaeological casework of “vampire” skeletal remains in Venice: Odontological and anthropological prospectus." *Journal of forensic sciences* 55, no. 6 (2010): 1634-1637.
* **Harvard:** Nuzzolese, E. and Borrini, M., 2010. Forensic approach to an archaeological casework of “vampire” skeletal remains in Venice: Odontological and anthropological prospectus. *Journal of forensic sciences*, *55*(6), pp.1634-1637.