Unique Find In A French Crypt Offers The First Evidence Of European Familial Embalming Dating Back To The 16th Century

Jan Bartek - AncientPages.com - A unique find has unveiled fascinating insights into the burial rituals of medieval Western Europe. For the first time, researchers have uncovered bioarchaeological evidence of familial embalming for both infants and adults in early modern France. Traditionally, embalming was thought to be an exotic ritual linked mainly to ancient Egyptian or South American cultures. However, recent findings at the Château des Milandes in Castelnaud-la-Chapelle, Dordogne, France, reveal that these techniques were also practiced in Europe.

Château des Milandes. Credit: Jean-Yves Didier - CC BY-SA 3.0

The discovery of the remains of seven adults and five children in a crypt, alongside a separately buried woman, all members of the aristocratic Caumont family and embalmed, provides researchers at the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) with invaluable insights into European embalming practices from the 16th and 17th centuries. This finding not only challenges prior assumptions but also significantly enhances our understanding of historical cultural exchanges and influences across continents.

The skull of the individually buried woman was recovered. Credit: M. Bessou/CNRS UMR

"These finds provide unique insights into embalming techniques," says Caroline Partiot from the Austrian Archaeological Institute of the ÖAW. "Our examinations of a complete individual and nearly 2,000 fragments show a careful and highly standardized technical treatment of the deceased, similar for adults and children. This reveals know-how passed down for over two centuries," said Partiot in a press release.

Researchers have conducted a detailed examination of embalming techniques by studying skeletons from the crypt and an individually buried female body. The analysis focused on cut marks across the entire skeleton, revealing meticulous skinning that covered the whole body, including limbs down to fingertips and toes. These methods align with procedures documented in 1708 by renowned French surgeon Pierre Dionis, indicating their use during an 18th-century autopsy in Marseille. According to archaeologists, this tradition remarkably persisted for at least two centuries.

A reconstructed skull of an adult buried in the crypt, showing evidence of various sawing steps, is viewed from the posterior. Credit: M. Bessou/CNRS UMR

The tomb's discovery and skeletal analysis highlight that this practice was a well-established tradition within the Caumont family, who held high social status at the time. Partiot notes that embalming seemed more about displaying bodies during funeral ceremonies than long-term preservation.

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Instances of multiple embalmings within one family are rare; in medieval Western Europe, only the Medici family in 15th-century Italy is known to have practiced it with children included. Partiot points out that applying such practices to all family members regardless of age or gender underscores how status was inherited by birth.

Written by Jan Bartek - AncientPages.com Staff Writer