A prehistoric CSI solves a murder that occurred 5,200 years ago

2024-02-18 12:30:43

A little over a century ago, back in 1915at the bottom of a Danish wetland were found the remains of a brutal murder. The victim, a man. And the evidence of the crime, a handful of bones, a completely fragmented skull and a wooden club. At first, forensic experts believed it was a relatively recent death. But after some more in-depth analysis came the surprise. That man had been murdered, yes, but 5,200 years ago. For decades, his remains became a relic for the scientific community. And now, millennia later, several studies have managed to solve the mystery behind the life and death of the called ‘Vittrup man’.

Like any good analysis of ‘prehistoric CSI’, the first step to solving this mystery was understand who exactly the victim was. According to the scientific magazine ‘Nature’, a recent analysis of 317 ancient skeletons discovered in Denmark discovered that, contrary to what was expected, the genes of the Vittrup man did not have much to do with those of his contemporaries. Once this anomaly was discovered, an individual analysis of his skeletal remains confirmed that, indeed, This man was not originally from Danish lands but was a migrant. Experts, in fact, believe that she was born and raised along the Scandinavian coast, probably in Norway or Swedenand that as an adult he migrated to Denmark.

An additional study of their enamel and dental tartar, as well as bone remains, published this week in the journal ‘PLOS ONE’, also revealed more information about his life. Everything indicates that the Vittrupp man belonged to a community of hunter-gatherers. Since he was little, he became accustomed to migrating in search of food. And there are even signs that suggest that fed, among other things, fish, seals and whales.

The main hypothesis is that he died as a victim of a ritual sacrifice, although there are also those who believe that he could have been murdered.

But something happened when he turned 18 because, as experts argue, It seems that it arrived in Denmark. And there he abandoned the nomadic life, became a farmer and began to feed on sheep and goats. There are those who believe that the Vittrupp man could have been a slave sold to an inhabitant of Danish lands or simply a merchant who ended up settling there.

Is it a cold-blooded ritual or crime?

Having clarified the identity of the victim, as well as some of his vital ups and downs, the scientists focused on investigating his death. The main hypothesis is that the man from Vittrup died when I was between 30 and 40 years old. Probably the result of a ritual sacrifice. According to experts, these types of practices were very common in the region during the Stone Age. And it was also quite common to throw corpses into the swamps and wetlands of the area as part of ritual practices. So in a way, it makes sense to think that was killed as a sacrifice to the gods. Perhaps, because he was no longer suitable for physical work.

But does that justify such an extremely violent murder? Experts point out that other victims of ritual sacrifices were found shot with arrows or strangled and without many signs of extreme violence. But the Vittrup man’s autopsy suggests that he received at least eight violent blows to the head which ended up leaving his skull shattered. That is why there are also those who believe that, perhaps, this person was murder victim in cold blood, whether premeditated or accidental, and that he was finally thrown into the swamp to hide his death. For now, according to the latest studies, the The most probable hypothesis remains that of ritual sacrifice. And with this, at least for now, it seems that the file of a death that occurred 5,200 years ago would be resolved.