| Nicolaus Rungius Human Mummy | |
| |
| Biographical Information | |
|---|---|
| Name(s) | Nicolaus Rungius |
| Age | 69 |
| Sex | Male |
| Status | |
| Height | |
| Source | |
| Culture | Finnish |
| Date(s) | 1560-1629 |
| Site | |
| Current Location | |
| Location | Keminmaa, Finland |
| Catalog # | |
Nicolaus Matthiae Rungius was born in Loimaa, Finland. He worked as a chaplain in the Nykarleby and Keminmaa churches. He married Helena, the daughter of the Kemi vicar, Simon Ruuth, and followed his father-in-law as vicar. As vicar, he managed matters all over the Kemi Lapland area. He served as vicar during the Thirty Years' War and died in 1629. As was the custom at the time, he was buried underneath the church floor.
Mummification[]
Rungius's reputation grew when his body, which had been mummified instead of decomposing, was found underneath the church floor during the Greater Wrath in the early 18th century. Such crypt mummies are not uncommon.
In 1875, when unearthed, the body still retained both arms, but one of them later disappeared, apparently taken as a relic. The vicar's body is still in the Keminmaa old St. Michael Church underneath the floor between the altar and the sacristy, protected by glass. Visitors may see the mummy during summertime