Fully dressed and preserved 350-year-old corpse of French noblewoman found

theguardian.com ^ | Wednesday 3 June 2015 18.40 EDT | Kim Willsher in Paris

[BenLurkin]

French archaeologists have uncovered the well-preserved body of a noblewoman who died 350 years ago – along with the clothes in which she was buried, including her cap and shoes, still intact.

The corpse of Louise de Quengo, a widow from an aristocratic family from Brittany, was discovered in an hermetically sealed lead coffin placed in a stone tomb at a convent chapel in the western city of Rennes.

Four other lead coffins dating from the 17th century were also found at the site of the Saint-Joseph chapel, as well as 800 other graves containing skeletons.

Researchers expected to find little but dust and bones when they opened the fifth coffin and were astonished to discover the nearly intact body of De Quengo, Lady of Brefeillac, who died in 1656, some time in her 60s. They were able to identify the 1.45 m (5ft) body because of inscriptions on a relic containing the heart of her husband, Toussaint de Perrien, Knight of Brefeillac, who died in 1649.

Archaeologist Rozenn Colleter, of the Institute National de Recherches Archaeologiques Préventive (National Institute for Preventative Archaeological Research), was present when De Quengo’s coffin was opened.

[boop]

I remember when Clinton said that.

It was weird and freaky, even for him.

[ETL]

I'd hit it!

[Cry if I Wanna]

Isn’t this kind of like grave robbing.

Whats the point of digging them all up? Let them rest in peace.

[Scrambler Bob]

Dibs on the rich cougar! —

You’ll have to fight off Billy Clinton.

[Vendome]

[Menehune56]

Oops, no - remembering what Bill Clinton said. Didn’t come out right!

[ETL]

Lol! Lucky you were still were to clarify That!

[Red Badger]

Lead........

[ETL]

Lol! Lucky you were still here to clarify That!

[ExCTCitizen]

Also, it has a voter registration card for the Democrats with a Hillary '16 button. 😊

[tumblindice]

"hermetically sealed" Prince Albert in a can.

[Smokin' Joe]

Considering that there are likely living relatives, who wants to see a traceable ancestor's corpse hacked up (however surgically)?

I agree. Let them rest in peace rather than make a media circus out of it.

[St_Thomas_Aquinas]

-— Isn’t this kind of like grave robbing. -—

I don’t want an archeologist from the University of whatever digging up my parents’ graves out of curiosity 350 years from now.

This bugs the hell out of me.

[tumblindice]

Put them in spring-loaded coffins and I'll betcha they aren't bothered twice:

[yefragetuwrabrumuy]

Lead doesn’t harm the bacteria inside you unless you consume a whole bunch that is in a form that could do that. Even then, it’s unlikely. My first guess is that they used some arcane form of embalming.

[Red Badger]

The bacteria could have died without any oxygen...................

[SunkenCiv]

;') Thanks BenLurkin.

[SunkenCiv]

It was a rescue dig.

> The body was found at a construction site for a future convention centre. Four other lead coffins dating back to the 17th century were also found in the convent, along with 800 other graves, but they only contained skeletons, unlike the fully preserved Louise de Quenga.

http://phys.org/news/2015-06-fully-dressed-17th-century-noblewoman-unearthed.html

[xzins]

It’s not grave robbing or desecration of the dead if it’s done by a person or organization with letters after their name.

/sarc

[Smokin' Joe]

It was a rescue dig.

Thanks. That explains a lot.