Vampire skull found (photo)
From the archive: published Mar 10, 2009, 17 years ago. Details may have changed since.
A “vampire skull” has been discovered in Venice, Italy.
The female skull was forced open by a brick, an exorcism technique used on suspected vampires. During the Middle Ages, female vampires were believed to spread the plague. Placing a brick in their jaws was believed to prevent the vampire rising from the dead and infecting more people.
The discovery is a notable as it is the first time that archaeological remains have been interpreted as belonging to a vampire. Unfortunately though, the remains did not include blood sucking long teeth.