jeweled skeletons

Thousands of 400, year old human skeletons  each adorned  in gold silver and precious game were hidden away in church vaults storage  units and containers all  over europe  before being recently  discovered  by  Paul  Koudounairs  a los Angles histortrian  dubbed Indiana bones. The skeletons  dug up from Roman catacombs in  the  16th century and on the others of the vatican were given fictitious names and certificates indetifying them as easy Christmas martyrs . They  were than sent catholic churer in Germany Austria and Switzerland  to replacer religious relics that  hand been destroyed in the wake of the protestant    Reformation. There  the skeleton  waste   dressed in ornate costumes and  lavishly  decorated  mostly by because such was their supped status they could be handled only by someone  who han token a sacred vow to church. some corpses look five years to decorate with hundred  of  sparkling jewels and several pounds of  gold  of gold and silver. The jeweled  alone are worth  thousands of dollars. Many were true works of art to construct the relic of st sedates in Rheinau Switzerland  a wax face was molded the upper half of the skull and a wrap  was used to create a mouth in order to make the cropse look more lifelike.  know  as Catacomb saints the became holy shrines even though none of them had actually been canonized in fact few of anyone of religious significance. by the 19th century the fake saints had been exposed and were considered an embarrassment  the catholic Church most of them were  remove from display  stripped of their honors and away in containers for safe keeping they  remained largely forgotten until Paul   Koudounais found their secret  hideaway during his three year trawl of Europe churches and ossuaries  He hunted down and  photographed dozen  of the skeletons to tell the amazing story  of the jewel  encrusted skeleton of  the catholic church.The jewel  encrusted relic  Skeleton of St Benedictus was found in the church of St  Micheal in Munch Germany. The skull  St Deodatus was covered  with wtax given fake eye and  a veil to  make it appertains more lifelike. The skeletal gold entrusted hand of St Valentin or  St valentine was found in bad schussenreid  Germany. There  have been 11 St valentines recognized  the catholic church  but one that the church believes to be the St valentine resided it Terni lately. Paul found the this carefree skeleton of St  freidrch in the world renowned Bendictine Abby i Melk Austria. from called book ripley Believe it or not.