2023-08-16 17:00:08
Much has been written about Ötzi, the ‘ice man’ who was assassinated in the Alps more than 5,000 years ago and whose mummy has survived to this day. His body was found in the canyon of an alpine glacier in September 1991. At first it was believed that it was a mountaineer who had recently died but, after exhaustive analysis, it was discovered that it was a man who lived more than five millennia ago. But what was this guy really like? What did this mysterious being who has starred in so many series, movies and books look like? The most detailed analysis to date of his genes reveals that Ötzi was bald, with dark skin and brown eyes..
Until now, reconstructions of the ice man had always drawn as a stout being, with light skin and a hairy body. But according to a new study of his genespublished this Wednesday in the scientific journal ‘Cell Genomics’, Ötzi had highly pigmented skindark eyes and not a single hair on the head.
“Early iceman reconstructions are likely biased by our preconceived conception of what a stone age human must have been like in Europe. But after this analysis we know that Ötzi was more like the mummy that has survived to this day than the reconstructions that have been made of him,” explain the researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology who have led this latest analysis.
Previous studies had also revealed that Ötzi, who died at the age of 46 while wandering in the Alps, measured about 1.60 tallweighed about 50 kilograms and had more than sixty tattoos in your body. These markings, mostly in the shape of a cross or parallel lines, covered his knees, ankles, and lower back. Its shape and position indicate that it probably they were not decorative marks or for aesthetic purposes but rather part of a medical ritual to treat pain. Some studies even suggest that the ice man suffered from various chronic diseases, stomach problems caused by bacteria as well as arthritis attacks.
“Ötzi looked more like the mummy that has survived to this day than the reconstructions that have been made of him””
victim of a murder
Ötzi’s mummy is, for now, the oldest ever found of our species. Three decades after its discovery, the study of this Neolithic chimera continues to reveal secrets about how the life (and death) of this mysterious being was. One of the most impressive findings in this case occurred in 2001 when, after a new analysis of his body, it was discovered that this ice man had an arrow stuck in the left shoulder and a wound on the right hand. An X-ray and CT scan also revealed that she had several broken ribs and severe head trauma. According to the experts, all these tests suggest that this subject was shot from behind, bled to death and, little by little, it was buried by the snow of the Alps.
This hypothesis is supported, curiously, by the remains of the last meal Ötzi ate. An analysis of his stomach found that, just before he died, the iceman ate quite a feast. His last meal included pollen, mountain goat meat and a good handful of cereal of an ancient variety of wheat. Everything indicates that after this copious meal, especially high in fat and carbohydrates, it is likely that Ötzi was sleepy and look for a solitary corner in which to rest. And the moment was gone when, according to the investigators, the murderer of the ice man took advantage of the opportunity to end Ötzi’s life.
Family tree
Related news
Five millennia after his death, the study of the mummified corpse Ötzi continues to reveal unpublished details about what life was like for this enigmatic ice man. It is believed that he lived around the year 3,200 BC in the area now known as Val Venosta, located in the border between Italy and France. An analysis of the pollen found in this individual’s clothing, as well as in the arsenals that he carried with him on the day of his death, suggest that he died between late spring and early summer. The finding of remains of ears of wheat also indicates that this ice man could have engaged in agriculture oa livestock. That is why he is also known as ‘the Neolithic shepherd’.
The discovery of an arrow wound revealed that Ötzi had been murdered
There are also several investigations that have investigated the Ötzi family tree. A few years ago, for example, a study led by Walther Parson, from the Innsbruck Medical University, discovered the existence of 19 direct descendants of Ötzi who currently live in Austria. The study published this Wednesday also reveals that Ötzi was actually direct descendant of early Anatolian farmers who migrated to Europe some 8,000 years ago and who shaped the genetic mixture that, today, is still present in the DNA of the current inhabitants of the old continent.
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