A chemical analysis was performed on the letters of the legendary historical character whose legend is said to have been the inspiration for the fictional vampire Dracula has revealed Vlad Drăculea (aka Vlad the Impaler) may have cried tears of blood.
The paper left by the Wallachian ruler in the 15th Century suggests that he had a condition known to be HelacriaThe. The presence of blood in tears. He may also have suffered from skin and respiratory problems.
“To our reckoning,” Writes a Team led by chemist Maria Gaetana Giovanna Pittalà of the University of Catania in Italy, “this is the first time such research has been carried out and has helped to bring to the limelight the health status of Vlad Dracula the Impaler.”
Vlad Drăculea, also known as Vlad Țepeș, was certainly a towering figure in European history. His exploits in Wallachia as ruler are almost mythical, especially the bloody measures he took to protect his country from multiple conflicts.
Estimates put the number of deaths at Over 80,000 – and an estimated Over 20,000These were all impaled with wooden spikes. There are many more. There are many forms of tortureHe has been (disputedly) accused.
Despite the fact that his life and deeds are well documented and, in some cases, no doubt exaggerated to a certain extent, we will likely never know all of them. But Pittalà and her colleagues thought there may be a way to find out – by studying objects that Drăculea is known to have touched. Namely letters written by the man himself.
LettersHistory buffs are in for a real treat. In this case, however, it was not the contents of Drăculea’s letters that interested the researchers, but what secrets may have been left behind on the paper: the molecules and proteins that may have been transferred by human touch.
It is not recommended to extract material from these letters, as they are over 500 years old. This could damage the documents, which would be a loss. A special film has been developed recently that shows the letters. ethylene-vinyl acetate. ion exchangersAncient fabrics and papers have shown promising results when treated with water-repelling materials.
This film can be applied to any surface and extract molecules and proteins without damaging it.
The team used these films on three of the Vlad Drăculea letters, one dated 1457, the other two 1475, and used mass spectrometry to analyze the results. They found thousands peptides, proteins. The researchers focused on the signals of human biology. Because the letters have been handled by many people over the years, they only used the material that was the most degraded.
The results of the study were quite interesting. The researchers discovered two proteins that could be indicative of a Genetic respiratory diseaseThis leads to chronic sinus and lung infections. The researchers also discovered peptides that belong to proteins linked with inflammation. Put together, this suggests a skin or respiratory disorder – or perhaps both.
Researchers also discovered peptides that were associated with blood proteins, tears and retinal proteins. There were reports, the researchers assert, that Vlad Drăculea cried bloody tears; indeed, the concept has been popular in fictional depictionsDracula. This is not a definitive proof, but it does suggest that the rumor may have some truth.
“Altogether the proteomic information here reported can’t be considered exhaustive but might indicate, according to certain stories, that he likely suffered, at least during his final years, from a disease called hemolacria. That is, he was able to shed tears mixed with blood.” You can write.
Setting rumor and Vlad Drăculea aside, the research is interesting for other reasons. The analysis of the three letters revealed thousands of peptides produced by bacteria. The virusThe wallachian 15th century is revealed through fungi and insects.
Some of the bacteria were associated with urinary and intestinal infections. They also found peptides linked to Yersinia pestis – the cause of the black death.
Other molecules revealed the presence fruit flies and viruses transmitted by ticks and mosquitoes, as well as molds that grow in rotting fruit.
The team believes that these results offer hope for the use of their techniques on other ancient texts, revealing the inner workings and times long gone.
The research has appeared in Analytical Chemistry.
