Vampires in Poland

According to folk beliefs, a vampire (also known as a "wąpierz" or "upior") is a resurrected corpse that rises from the grave and sustains itself by sucking blood from living humans. By feeding on the vital substance of the living person—their blood—it keeps itself in good condition and prevents decomposition, which is the natural consequence of death. This terrifying characteristic surely aroused fear in people, who—lacking modern medicine—tried to explain the phenomena occurring in the human body in their own way. To avoid the undead, people lit fires until dawn, rang bells, and decorated doors with wreaths made of garlic and wild thistles.

In Poland, vampires were beheaded in the Bieszczady Mountains area. Also, in Kraków, "vampiric" burials have been discovered—during archaeological work under the main market square, several such graves were found. There are also legends of vampires roaming in Wrocław. Additionally, in places like Rybna and Sandomierz, you can find vampire cemeteries, where tombs have been found indicating the belief of the local population in the return of the dead from the grave.

A white horse, seen as a good omen, would pass through the cemetery, and if the animal refused to step over a particular grave, it was opened, the heart pierced, and the body buried face down.

To protect against the return of a vampire, the most common safeguard was to place the body in a fetal position or on its stomach, sometimes additionally restraining it. An axe was placed near the neck. For extra certainty, the heart or abdomen of the deceased was pierced with sharpened stakes, usually made of aspen, and iron rods. To prevent the deceased from rising from the grave, their heels were often mutilated and tendons cut, nails were thrown into the coffin, and heavy stones were placed on the chest. However, the most reliable method was the decapitation and displacement of the head, and in some cases, the cremation of the body.

★ Anti-vampire burials: Archaeology students discovered the grave of a woman who was buried in the cemetery in Pień. The remains, found in 2022, were also buried with a padlock at the feet. Additionally, a sickle was placed around the woman's neck, with the blade facing down.