Tomb of Casimir IV Jagiellon
1973 opening of the tomb
From 1972 to 1973, the Cathedral authorities undertook work to renovate the Holy Cross chapel.
As part of this project, permission was given by the Archbishop of Kraków, Karol Wojtyła – the
future Pope John Paul II – to open the tomb of Casimir and Elizabeth in May 1973.
The work was undertaken by a team of 12 conservationists and their initial aim was
to examine the contents of the tomb in order to assess how best to renovate it. When
the tomb was opened, the team found rotting wooden coffins and the remains of Casimir and Elizabeth.
The restoration work was then carried out and, once it had been completed, Casimir and Elizabeth were
re-interred in a ceremony held in the cathedral on 18 September 1973
with Archbishop Wojtyła conducting the service.
In the following months, members of the conservation team began to die prematurely and unexpectedly:
Feliks Dańczak died in April 1974, Stefan Walczy in June 1974, Kazimierz Hurlak in August 1974, and Jan Myrlak in May 1975.
Rumours of a "Jagiellonian curse" began to circulate.
However, microbiologist Bolesław Smyk identified the presence of the fungus Aspergillus flavus in samples taken from the tomb.
This type of fungus produces toxic substances called aflatoxins which are linked to a number of serious health conditions affecting the liver if not carcinogenic.
The Times reported that it is that the conservation team members had inhaled the toxic spores of the fungus as they opened the tomb.