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7 Bizarre Ways the Human Heart Was Exploited In History You’ve Never Heard Of
From sacred relics to royal rituals, discover how the heart became history’s strangest symbol of power and fear.
7 min readMay 7, 2025
Hearts show up everywhere during Valentine’s Day — from chocolate boxes to red-glittered greeting cards — but history has had a far less romantic approach to this vital organ.
Across centuries and civilizations, human hearts have been collected, pickled, displayed, buried in separate tombs, carried into battle, or even eaten.
The stories are bizarre and at times surprisingly ceremonial. What follows is a curious trip into the strangest ways actual human hearts have been handled throughout our history.
7- The Heart Vault Hidden Beside The Trevi Fountain
Just around the corner from the busy Trevi Fountain in Rome stands the Church of Santi Vincenzo e Anastasio a Trevi.
Most passersby are unaware that inside this quiet place lie the preserved hearts of 22 popes.
