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The ancient world equivalent of the phrase, "It's like taking coal to Newcastle," was "It's like taking vampires to Santorini. That's right, the Island of Santorini was famous for it's vampires. These are Greek Vampires, of course. These were beneficial. They were known for protecting relatives after dead and seeking vengeance against those that hurt them or their families.

Of course I don't believe in vampires. I do believe in the studies done on the soil of Santorini though. Apparently corpses decay incredibly slowly there due to qualities of the soil, such as low bacteria count and it's chemical composition. In historical times, environmental upheaval has allowed observation of extremely well preserved corpses that were buried for more than a decade. Take the fact that a good storm would reveal well preserved "miraculous" corpses and a societal tendency toward bloody unofficial justice, and you get a reputation for protection by the undead that encourages people to be kind to widows and orphans.

Speculation, yes, but fairly solid.