Someone Just Ran Off With an 800-Year-Old Saint's Skull From a Czech Church

Here is a sentence you do not read every day: an unknown thief has snatched an 800-year-old skull believed to be that of Saint Zdislava of Lemberk from a display box in a Czech church. Then they ran away with it. Police announced the theft on Wednesday, and the security camera footage is, shall we say, not exactly helping the investigation.

The fuzzy image shows a silhouette dressed in black, running between the benches of the Saint Lawrence and Saint Zdislava basilica in Jablonne v Podjestedi, about 110 kilometres north of Prague. In their hands, police said, was the skull of the saint. The theft took place on Tuesday — in broad daylight, according to church officials. No word on whether any parishioners looked up from their prayers to see someone sprinting past with a medieval relic.

Saint Zdislava lived from 1220 to 1252 and was known for her generosity and work for the poor. She was canonised by Pope John Paul II in 1995. Her skull was not just any old bone. It was a relic revered by pilgrims who travelled to the basilica to seek her intercession. Locals say the church has been a quiet place of devotion for centuries — not exactly a high-risk target for international relic thieves.

"This is devastating news," Prague Archbishop Stanislav Pribyl told the CTK news agency. "The skull was revered by pilgrims… I cannot believe that someone practically in broad daylight steals from church a relic whose value is above all historical and also spiritual for believers."

For the faithful in Jablonne v Podjestedi, the loss is not about money. Relics of this age are rarely sold on the open market — they are far too recognisable. More likely, the thief either acted on a bizarre personal impulse or stole the skull for a private collector with very unusual taste in home decor.

Police initially identified the suspect as a man. Then a spokeswoman later said that they were not sure and were still evaluating material from the security camera. So the thief could be a man, could be a woman, could be an incredibly fast pilgrim with a twisted sense of humour. At this point, the investigation appears to consist of one blurry photo and a lot of shrugging.

What the thief plans to do with an 800-year-old saint's skull is anyone's guess. Relic thefts are not unheard of — a few years ago, a similar theft made headlines in Germany — but they are rare enough to leave archbishops searching for words and police scrambling for clues. For now, the basilica is down one very old, very revered skull. The display box sits empty. And somewhere out there, someone is in possession of a piece of medieval Catholicism that really does not belong to them.

The church has asked anyone with information to come forward. The police have asked anyone who sees a person dressed in black carrying a human skull to, well, call them. And the ghost of Saint Zdislava — assuming she is watching — might be wondering what on earth she did to deserve this.

Written by Freya Stensrud