8 August 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

500-year-old curse tablet found in Germany

In the city of Rostock on Germany’s northern coast, archaeologists found a lead curse tablet invoking Satan and two other devils in a 15th-century latrine. The plaque was unearthed during work on the construction site for the extension of Rostock City Hall.

The tablet with a curse spell lay deep in the ground for centuries. When unrolled, the words “sathanas taleke belzebuk hinrik berith” were legible. It was about a woman called Taleke and a certain Hinrik (Heinrich), who obviously had to deal with the devils Satan, Beelzebub and Berith.

The inscription is a list of names written in Gothic tiny script. The devils invoked are Satan, Beelzebub, and Berith (also known as Baʿal Berith, a Canaanite deity equated with Beelzebub in the Rabbinic tradition). The apparent targets of the curse are Taleke and Hinrik.

The discovery is especially unique because curse tablets are mostly known from ancient times, around 800 B.C. until 600 A.D., in Greek and Roman regions, excavation leader Jörg Ansorge said in the release. Similar finds from the same era are mostly unknown.

Construction at a town hall in Germany uncovered a rare Middle Ages artifact, officials said. Photo: Rostock Press and Information Office
Construction at a town hall in Germany uncovered a rare Middle Ages artifact, officials said. Photo: Rostock Press and Information Office

Early in the 7th century marked the end of the lead curse tablet era. Curses from later periods have been discovered, but they were in distinct forms. Apparently, the ancient tradition was still in practice in medieval Rostock at least once.

“Our discovery, on the other hand, can be dated to the 15th century. It’s really a very special find.” According to Ansorge, similar finds from the Middle Ages were unknown.

Several bronze taps were discovered at the site, archaeologists said. Photo: KOE Rostock
Several bronze taps were discovered at the site, archaeologists said. Photo: KOE Rostock

The tablet was discovered at the bottom of a latrine at the end of a plot of land. Even in ancient times, “curse tablets” were placed where they were difficult or impossible to find.

According to a Dec. 12 news release from KOE, a real estate company in Rostock involved in the excavations, the team of archaeologists excavated six medieval houses and multiple cellars at the town hall site. Experts discovered traces of inhabitants’ crafts and living, a stone staircase, and various bronze taps from the 16th and 17th centuries within the cellars and houses.

Cover Photo: Archaeology in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (AIM-V)

Related Articles

Archaeologists found three large shipwrecks, 139 Viking Graves, and a ship-shaped mound in Sweden

21 October 2024

21 October 2024

Exciting discoveries in Sweden! Archaeologists were preparing to investigate a Stone Age settlement outside Varberg. But they came across a...

An 8500-year-old wooden ladder remain was discovered at Çatalhöyük

12 April 2022

12 April 2022

Remains of the wooden ladder were discovered for the first time in Çatalhöyük, one of the best-preserved Neolithic settlements in...

Australia’s 1,400-year-old Mysterious Earth Rings: Evidence of Millennia of Human Effort, Not Natural Formation

21 January 2025

21 January 2025

A chain of mysterious earth rings in the Sunbury hills at the fringe of Melbourne, in Australia have been found...

1800-year-old marble inscription found in Turkey’s Aigai excavations deciphered

2 October 2022

2 October 2022

The 1800-year-old inscription, consisting of 3 pieces of marble, found in the excavations in the ancient city of Aigai in...

A Baptismal Surprise: Triton Baths in Southeastern Rome Converted into Early Christian Church

7 May 2025

7 May 2025

Recent archaeological excavations within the monumental complex of the Villa di Sette Bassi, situated in the southeastern outskirts of Rome,...

A Medieval Barbican and a Network of Passages Uncovered in Western Slovakia’s town of Trenčín

5 December 2024

5 December 2024

A medieval barbican (fortified outpost or fortified gateway), and a network of passages that acted as a sewerage system have...

Ancient Eco-Tech Uncovered in Lebanon: Phoenicians Used Recycled Pottery for Hydraulic Lime Plaster 2,700 Years Ago

23 July 2025

23 July 2025

Excavations at Tell el-Burak Reveal Technological Innovation and Early Sustainable Construction in Iron Age Lebanon In a major archaeological breakthrough,...

Fragments of the World’s Oldest Known Rune Stone Discovered in Norway

3 February 2025

3 February 2025

Archaeologists have found fragments of the world’s oldest known rune stone at the Svingerud burial field in Norway and fitted...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Unearths Europe’s Largest Hoard of 2,000-Year-Old Bipyramidal Ingots from the Sava River

7 August 2025

7 August 2025

Previously recognized for its exhibitions on medieval manuscripts and regional folklore, the Franciscan Monastery Museum “Vrata Bosne” in Tolisa is...

Rare Arabic inscription discovered during Malta housing project works

3 May 2023

3 May 2023

A rare Arabic inscription, possibly dating back to medieval times, was discovered at the site of a social housing project...

Tomb of an Urartian buried with his dog, cattle, sheep, and 4 horses unearthed

6 September 2021

6 September 2021

In ancient times, the dead were buried with their living and non-living things. The offerings placed as dead gifts varied...

HS2 archaeologists discover Romanization of Iron Age village in Britain

12 January 2022

12 January 2022

Archaeologists have uncovered a vast Roman trading town on Britain’s HS2 high-speed rail route. Evidence found during a dig of...

Restoration Complete: Athena Temple in Side Reopens to the Public

24 March 2025

24 March 2025

The Athena Temple, once overshadowed by the more prominent Temple of Apollo, has emerged as a significant historical and cultural...

Türkiye’s Neolithic Settlement Çayönü Hill Discovered New Tombs from Early Bronze Age

4 September 2023

4 September 2023

Archaeologists have unearthed 5 more tombs dating to the Early Bronze Age during the recent excavations on Çayönü Hill in...

KIŠIB: A Digital Archive From 80,000 Mesopotamian Seals is Being Created

19 December 2024

19 December 2024

Over the next 16 years, a research team from the Institute for Near Eastern Archaeology at the Free University of...