Detecting the wall of human bones 500 years old

Archaeologists found a series of walls made of human bones inside the old Saint-Bavaria church in the city of Ghent.

The macabre structure is thought to date back to the 17th century, including the walls built of adult femur and shin bones , next to some skulls. "This is an unprecedented finding in Ghent," project leader Janiek De Gryse told Fox News.

Picture 1 of Detecting the wall of human bones 500 years old
Human skeleton wall inside Saint-Bavaria church.(Photo: Fox News).

Picture 2 of Detecting the wall of human bones 500 years old
The walls are built primarily from the thigh bones, shinbone and skulls of adults.(Photo: Mirror).

"The walls seem to have been built when the church's graveyard was destroyed. They could not throw away the remains so they used them to create new tombs. There's still a lot of research to be done , " De said. Gryse adds. The skeleton was identified as dating from the 15th century, meaning 200 years earlier than the time the walls were built.

According to the team, the faithful in the Middle Ages believed in the physical revival, so the skeleton was considered the most important part. That is why the tombs are sometimes built against the walls of the church.

Explaining that most of the bones found are the femur, shin, and skull bones, De Gryse said when cleaning the graveyard, people might not have enough time to collect small bones like vertebrae, ribs, or bones of the hands, feet, especially of children. During the Middle Ages, children's tombs were often less popular than adults.

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