The Iceman

It was September 19, 1991. A couple from Nuremberg went hiking in the Ötztal Alps. Their destination was Finailspitze in the Similaun region. The weather was good, and the two hikers were surrounded by a magnificent mountain landscape.

On their way back, at the Hauslabjoch pass at an altitude of 3,200 metres, they suddenly saw something brown sticking out of the scree. As they came closer, they discovered a human corpse. It was lying face down on a rock. The upper body was naked, and the rest was covered with water and snow.

At first, people thought it was a mountaineer who had suffered an accident. But it soon became clear from the examinations that this person had been lying here for several thousand years. The snow and ice had preserved his body. Parts of his clothing and equipment were also found. We now know a great deal about this man.

Scientists from several countries examined the body. They discovered that he had lived more than 5,300 years ago. He was about 1.60 meters tall and around 40 to 45 years old. He wore a bearskin cap and a grass cloak. He had weapons and some embers from his last campfire with him. He probably died in great agony, high in the mountains, far from any human settlement. Because he was found in the Ötztal Alps, he is sometimes called "Ötzi". The body still weighed 13.3 kg. Ice and snow had preserved it completely; only one injury was found on his left hip. A body preserved in this way is called a glacier mummy.

The man’s teeth were quite healthy, but badly worn. It was discovered that he had broken ribs on both sides. The body had more than 50 tattoos.

They also discovered what the man had died of. They found a small stone arrowhead in his body. It had narrowly missed his lung. The arrow had entered his left shoulder from behind. The man probably could no longer move his left arm towards the end. But who shot him? Why was he shot? Nobody knows. Perhaps he was being pursued, fled into the mountains and froze to death. Perhaps there was a dispute over the man’s last hunting catch. They found remnants of his last meal in his stomach.

An examination of the stomach contents showed that the man had eaten venison and a few grains of cereal three to four hours before he died. Whipworm eggs were also found in his intestines. From this, scientists concluded that he probably had diarrhea. Today, the Iceman’s mummy is kept at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Bolzano, Italy. The find site in the Ötztal Alps was 92 m from the border. It was on the Italian side, so “Ötzi” belongs to Italy, not Austria.

To prevent the body from thawing and decomposing, it must be kept very cold. That is why a chamber was built where the temperature is always minus 6°C and the humidity is high. Museum visitors can view the mummy through a small window. Of course, the museum has much more to tell you about the Iceman, for example about his clothing and weapons.

Some of his clothing has also been found. It, too, was preserved by the ice and cold. This tells us that the Iceman was actually dressed very warmly.

He wore a loincloth around his waist. Trousers did not exist 5,300 years ago, but the man’s legs were covered by 65 cm-long tubes sewn from goatskin. He wore a long fur coat that reached his knees and was made from many rectangular pieces. The pieces were made of goatskin and sewn together with animal sinew. His shoes were made of leather. The soles were made from bear hide, and the uppers from deer hide. Inside the leather casing was a net made of grass cord. The net was filled with hay to keep his feet warm. Do you think “Ötzi” still had cold feet? Very likely, as the shoes were certainly not waterproof. Three large pieces of woven grass were recovered at the site where the body was found. They were parts of a sleeveless cloak. The cloak was worn over the fur coat and made from long grasses. The man wore a cap made of bear hide, sewn from several strips of fur. He could tie two leather straps beneath his chin.

The Iceman had several objects and weapons with him. These included an axe fitted with a 60 cm yew-wood handle. The blade was made almost entirely of copper. The quiver was a long, narrow leather pouch. It contained 14 arrows, several antler points, animal sinews and a cord. Two of the arrows had stone tips. The man also had 12 arrows with him that were unfinished. The dagger consisted of a small stone blade and an ash-wood handle. It was kept in a bast sheath. The man also had two birch-bark containers with him. One contained small pieces of charcoal. Apparently, he had carried the remains of his last campfire in it.

A great deal has been discovered about "Ötzi", and a model of his body has even been created. Nevertheless, many questions remain unanswered. What did he do for a living: was he a farmer, hunter or warrior? Was he a trader? What language did he understand? How far had he travelled? Did he know only the mountains, or also the plains and the sea?

But most of all: Why did he die in agony at an altitude of 3,200 metres, badly wounded and helpless? He can no longer tell us. But why not go and visit him? At the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology, you can see him in his cold chamber and learn about the latest research findings.

This educational feature was created with the kind support of the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology.