How Elderly People Were Killed in Old Russia and 3 Other Terrifying Traditions
Centuries ago, everyday life was filled with rituals, superstitions, and beliefs that seemed perfectly normal to the people who practiced them. Today, some of those customs sound like something straight out of a horror movie. Leaving the Elderly to Die in the Bathhouse According to accounts of this pagan tradition, which reportedly survived into the late Middle Ages, elderly people who were already close to death were sometimes taken to a banya, the traditional Russian bathhouse, during winter.
They were washed as if they were already dead, dressed in wet clothing, and left lying on a bench after part of the roof had been opened. The freezing air did the rest. Even a young, healthy person would struggle to survive those conditions for long, let alone someone elderly and seriously ill.
Bathhouses were also sometimes used for temporary winter burials. When the ground outside froze solid, the dirt floor inside…
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