Primary source guide for archaeology estimates

Ghent Vlasmarkt Cemetery Archaeology Sources

Audit how four exposed burials became Ghent's estimate of at least about 240, and separate the public sources from the technical records still missing.

Search Ghent cemetery records Read the evidence guide

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Product walkthrough

See how PSF keeps estimate claims tied to records

Search the claim, open the source, ask Sofia what the number can prove, and save the evidence trail before writing or posting.

Quick answer

Where should the Ghent source trail start?

Start with the City of Ghent notice for the estimate method, keep VRT open as the accessible English account, then look for technical records that are not yet public: BAAC field report, trench plan, borehole log, burial register, and osteological catalogue.

City notice·VRT report·Church context

Search

Start with Vlasmarkt, Sint-Jacobskerk, BAAC, and the 2026 cemetery estimate so the search stays tied to the right Ghent site.

Separate

Distinguish observed burials, borehole inference, local estimate, and area extrapolation before repeating the 240 number.

Check gaps

Look for the BAAC field report, trench plan, borehole log, burial register, osteological catalogue, and legal preservation record.

Write

Use Sofia to explain what each source proves, what it cannot prove, and how the estimate should be worded.

Source trail

Claim → source → boundary

The useful question is not “did Ghent find 240 skeletons?” It is how a direct observation became a local estimate and then a wider extrapolation.

Official notice

City of Ghent Vlasmarkt archaeology notice

The city notice is the load-bearing public source for the test pit, four exposed burials, borehole inference, roughly 20-in-pit estimate, and at least about 240 extrapolation.

Can prove

Pit size, observed burials, reported depth, five-level inference, 23-square-metre investigation area, and current preservation decision.

Be careful

It is not a full field report. It does not provide individual profiles, a trench plan, borehole log, or exact total.

Open the City of Ghent notice

Official mirror

City press-room mirror

The press-room page mirrors the city notice and can help with official media context or asset discovery.

Can prove

Official duplicate access to the same announcement and media context.

Be careful

It is a duplicate, not independent corroboration. Do not count it as a second excavation source.

Open the city press-room mirror

English reporting

VRT English report

VRT gives an accessible English rendering of the Vlasmarkt story and the city decision to pause the tree at that spot.

Can prove

English-language summary, local context, and current tree/preservation decision.

Be careful

It does not provide a trench plan, independent count, or osteological analysis.

Open the VRT report

Secondary summary

Archaeology Magazine brief

The Archaeology Magazine item is useful for catalyst trail and international pickup, but it compresses the method.

Can prove

That the story reached broader archaeology readers and how the headline was summarized.

Be careful

Do not use it over the city notice for the estimate method.

Open Archaeology Magazine

Place context

Sint-Jacobskerk and Vlasmarkt context

Church and heritage pages help locate the known churchyard beside Sint-Jacobskerk and the Vlasmarkt setting.

Can prove

Broad place context and church history.

Be careful

They do not date any individual burial or prove the 2026 estimate.

Open church context Open Vlasmarkt heritage record

Missing technical records

BAAC report, borehole log, and osteology

The strongest next records would be the field report, trench drawing, borehole log, context sheets, burial register, dating evidence, and osteological catalogue.

Can prove

Nothing yet. This is the update watchlist that would harden or revise the estimate.

Be careful

Do not invent these records or write as if they are public. Show their absence as part of the source trail.

Read what remains missing

Estimate ladder

Keep each number attached to its method

4

Use it for: Burials directly exposed in the test pit.

Do not overclaim: Not the total cemetery population and not 240 excavated skeletons.

About 5

Use it for: Burial levels indicated by borehole evidence.

Do not overclaim: Not five fully excavated strata with every individual counted.

Roughly 20

Use it for: Estimated individuals in the two-square-metre test pit.

Do not overclaim: Not twenty exposed, inventoried, or individually studied people.

At least about 240

Use it for: Extrapolated estimate across the 23-square-metre investigation area.

Do not overclaim: Not an exact total, not the whole churchyard population, and not an excavated count.

11th to 18th century

Use it for: Broad known churchyard use span from the public source trail.

Do not overclaim: Not a grave-by-grave date and not proof every exposed burial is medieval.

Current tree decision

Use it for: The tree is paused at that spot and remains are preserved in place for now.

Do not overclaim: Not a permanent promise that no future redevelopment or archaeology will happen.

From estimate to records

Do more than repeat “240 skeletons”

PrimarySourceFinder helps you separate direct observation from inference: find the city notice, open the accessible English report, identify the missing technical records, and ask Sofia how far the evidence can go.

Try the source search See how PSF works

✓

Find the official city notice before trusting a compressed headline.

✓

Keep Vlasmarkt separate from other Ghent cemetery projects.

✓

Ask Sofia whether a number is observed, inferred, or extrapolated.

✓

Save missing records as update targets instead of pretending they exist.

FAQ

Ghent Vlasmarkt cemetery source questions

Were 240 skeletons excavated in Ghent?

No. Four burials were exposed. The larger number is an extrapolated estimate based on borehole evidence and the 23-square-metre investigation area.

How did archaeologists reach the 240 estimate?

A borehole indicated about five stacked burial levels. The team estimated roughly 20 people in the two-square-metre test pit and extrapolated across the 23-square-metre investigation area.

Is every burial medieval?

Not established. The known churchyard spans the eleventh through eighteenth century, and no individual dates were published in the public notice.

Is the BAAC field report public?

No public BAAC field report, trench plan, borehole log, burial register, or osteological catalogue was located in the approved research packet.

Is this the Spaanskasteelplein cemetery?

No. This source page concerns Vlasmarkt beside Sint-Jacobskerk only. Details from other Ghent cemetery projects should not be imported into this source trail.

Read the evidence guide

Ghent Medieval Cemetery: Why Four Became 240

The companion article explains the test pit, the borehole, the estimate ladder, and why the number should not become a body count.

Open the article