Bolivians seek blessings for their human skulls

From La Paz:

Every year in early November Bolivians crowd local cemeteries to display the human skulls they keep at home, seeking to have the beloved craniums blessed.

Part of a centuries-old tradition, many here believe they represent the souls of the dearly departed. If treated kindly and with respect, the skulls will protect families and businesses, and grant wealth and a healthy life. Stout Andean women wearing long skirts and bowler hats were among the crowd taking their skulls into the cemetery chapel for a blessing.

"I brought her so that she can hear mass and receive a blessing for the favours that she granted us," a woman at a La Paz cemetery chapel told AFP as she carefully clutched her skull, decked out with flowers for the event.

Many were ensconced in a bed of colourful petals in display containers that ranged from simple, open-boxes to fancy glass boxes or wood displays with glass windows.

Because La Paz can be bitter cold at 4,000 meters (13,100 feet) above sea level, many of the skulls sported wool watch caps, berets and chullos, an Andean cap with earflaps. To protect against the high altitude's bright sunlight, others wore dark glasses, baseball caps and fedora hats. Many had cotton in their eye sockets and cigarettes in their mouths.

"This tradition has a pre-Hispanic origin," said Felix Mendoza, a professor of Andean theology at the Indigenous Tawantinsuyu University.

Dark Countess' grave dug up, body exhumed, then reburied

Exhumed, October 15:

The grave of a "Dark Countess" some believe was the eldest daughter of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI was exhumed on Tuesday in Germany in the hope of resolving the 200-year-old mystery.

Local authorities in Hildburghausen, Thuringia, central Germany agreed to open the tomb to conduct DNA tests on an elusive aristocrat who resided in the town from 1807 until her death in 1837 with a mysterious "count". Very little was known about the woman, as she only ventured out in a carriage or with a veil covering her face.

Marie Thérèse Charlotte of France was the only member of her immediate family to survive the French Revolution. Officially, Marie-Thérèse, also known as Madame Royale, survived the Reign of Terror, fled to Vienna...

Despite this official account of her life, rumours persisted that the real Marie Thérèse was so traumatised by the Revolution that she secretly changed places with Ernestine Lambriquet, believed to be her half sister, and lived in hiding in Hildburghausen.

Reburied, November 7:

In a solemn and dignified ceremony, the remains of the Dark Countess were reburied... They had been temporarily taken from the grave in Hildburghausen for a scientific investigation. Speeches of the town Hildburghausen, the German TV-channel MDR and the "Madame Royale" Historical Society admired the special fate of the mysterious lady. Priests of the Protestant and Catholic Church of Hildburghausen gave their Christian blessing. 
In a symbolic gesture, the "Heimatverein Eishausen" transferred earth from the grave of the Dark Count (the long-time companion of the Dark Countess) into the grave of the lady and fulfilled his wish to be buried beside his companion. After the reburial visitors commemorated in front of the grave which had been restored in recent weeks and equipped with a burial chamber.

She thought the trash can looked out of place, so peeked inside – and found a dead man (Video)

From Detroit, Michigan:

A 41-year-old woman was walking with her son just after 5 p.m. in an alley behind a bar on Woodward near Parkhurst, north of McNichols, when she spotted the can, Detroit police spokeswoman Kelly Miner said.
“She thought the trash can just looked out of place. She lifted up the lid to see, and she discovered the body,” Miner said.
Miner said authorities don’t know the man’s identity...or what types of injuries he may have suffered. An autopsy is expected

Decomposing body found on express train in India

It happened on the Jhelum Express:

A decomposed body was found in the second class reservation compartment of the Pune-Jammutavi Jhelum Express on Thursday evening when it arrived at the Pune railway station to depart for Jammu & Kashmir. The incident delayed the departure of the train for sometime.

The train arrived at the Pune station at around 5.20pm. Passengers who boarded the train complained of foul smell emanating from the compartment. Officials of the railway protection force (RPF) and government railway police (GRP) while inspecting the compartment found the body that appeared to be two-three days old.

Authorities are puzzled, of course:

Senior RPF officials said they were investigating how the body was not found, while the rakes* were being washed. "It is possible that the body was placed inside the rake after it was cleaned. It will then be a failure on the part of the Carriage and Wagon department, who are supposed to ensure that the SLR bogies are locked."

Another senior railway official, on condition of anonymity, said such incidences were far from rare. "We regularly recover bodies in trains originating from the city. Miscreants want to place such cases of murder or suicide into the railway police jurisdiction."

* Rake is a term used in some countries for 'train car.'

Woman visiting cemetery shocked when hand comes out of grave and she discovers man buried alive (Video)

In scenes reminiscent of zombie horror movies, a man emerged from a grave in Brazil waving his hands and arms about.


According to Brazilian media reports, a woman visiting a family grave had the shock of her life when part of a living human body came from a tomb, waving his arms around. The woman was in a cemetery in the suburb of Ferraz de Vasconcelos, Sao Paulo, when she heard faint noises, then noticed the earth moving in a pit nearby.

"I was terrified to see a man who I thought was dead, trying to get out of the grave," the petrified woman told Brazilian media.

He had managed to push his head and hands out and was moving his arms, trying to get out. The woman immediately called emergency services, who found the man still half buried in the plot when they arrived. The rescuers removed the dirt covering the rest of his body and lifted him out.

In these images taken from Brazilian television, the man seems almost lifeless, but is found by an emergency worker to be breathing. He was taken to a local hospital. The identity and health status of the man have not been disclosed.

Reports are that the man was a former employee of the city. The director of the cemetery confirmed that the unidentified man had been buried alive. Police are said to be investigating whether the burial was a mistake or a criminal act.

It is believed the incident took place this past November 1, or All Saints Day — the day in between Halloween and the Day of the Dead.