The "Iceman" in the Archaeological Museum
The Importance of the Find and the Exhibition in the Archaeological Museum
The South Tyrolean Archaeological Museum in Bolzano/Bozen, South Tyrol, was opened on the 28th of March, 1998.
In its 1,200 square meters of exhibition rooms, it documents the prehistoric and ancient history of South Tyrol, beginning with the end of the last glacial epoch (15,000 B.C.) and continuing to the reign of Charlemagne (ca. A.D. 800). Within this time-frame, the "Tyrolean Iceman" (nicknamed "Oetzi") and the artefacts found with him assume a central position in the exhibition area.
The most unique fact about the complex of archaeological finds which came to light in 1991 at the glacier's edge is the discovery of a fully-clothed, fully-equipped mummy, providing a glimpse of the clothes and technical abilities of the late Neolithic Age (3,300 to 3,100 B.C.). Prior to this, the only remnants we had of the apparel of those times were the relatively fragmentary remains found in the lake dwellings in the circum-alpine region; generally, these consisted of woven or knitted plant fibers. Animal-derived materials (furs, etc.) were absent there.
Thus, the complex of "Ice Man" finds offer a snapshot of a man from Chalcolithic times who was underway in the Upper Alps. His clothing consists of a cap, a fur coat, a pair of trousers, a leather loin cloth, and a pair of lined shoes. His equipment included an unfinished bow stave, a quiver and arrow shafts, a copper hatchet, a dagger with a silex (flint) blade, a retoucheur, a birch bark container, a backpack, as well as various spare materials and bone tips.
The Presentation of the Iceman in the Museum
In awareness of fact that this archaeological find could likely also result in heated ethical discussions, great importance was attached to a very restrained form of presentation.
By means of the partitioning of the exhibition room, the museum visitor can decide for himself if he wants to view the mummy or not. The window through which one can look at the mummy has not been "shoved" into the middle point of the entire exhibition.
Rather, it has been placed in a visually separated, tastefully designed apsidial room. The 40 x 30 cm wall opening allows the museum visitor to take a look into the refrigeration chamber in which the mummy – lying on a precision scale – is conserved at a temperature of -6º C and 98% air humidity.
Behind the metal wall visible in the exhibition room, there is the so-called "Iceman Box": a complex installation consisting of two refrigeration chambers with independent systems, an examination room, and a decontamination chamber. Sterile conditions and air filtration are guaranteed in all of the chambers.
A small laboratory is available for further scientific investigations. A computer-controlled station registers the measurement values (pressure, temperature, relative humidity, weight of the mummy) which are transmitted by the sensors and probes mounted on the mummy's body or in the refrigeration chamber. They can automatically sound an alarm if any changes occur. This alarm and security system enables the museum's own specialized technicians to react immediately in the event of an emergency.
The pathologist Dr. Eduard Egarter Vigl is responsible for the preservation of the mummy; a group of anthropologists and medical experts assist in the future research work being performed on the Iceman's mummy.
The fascination exerted by the world's oldest ice mummy is unbroken even now. But according to the museum visitors, it isn't just the chance for a "face-to-face" meeting with an ancient ancestor from the Chalcolithic Period which stamps itself in their memory. More than anything else, it is the equipment – preserved for the first time – of a Chalcolithic man which they find so enthralling: Frozen together with the man, his clothes, tools, and personal effects have withstood the millenia.
Carefully restored and reconstructed by the Roman-Germanic Central Museum in Mainz (Germany), his "thermal shoes", "backpack", and the dagger and sheath make it apparent how expediently equipped the Iceman was.
It is amazing to note how little difference there is between the Neolithic implements and the standard equipment of a modern mountaineer. Only the materials have undergone a fundamental modernization. Archeo-technicians from all over Europe have repeatedly created and tested replicas of the finds discovered along with the Iceman. They were astonished at how functional the bow and arrows were, the hatchet (which could also be used to fell trees), and the tinder polypore from Oetzi's belt, with which he could (together with pyrite nodules) start a fire regardless of wind and weather.
Scientific research is continuing to make great strides on the basis of this unique find, both with regards to the fate of the Iceman, himself, and to the times in which he lived. The first finds made it clear that the Iceman – who was, for his era, a relatively old man of approx. 45 years of age – suffered from arthritis. Tatoos applied at certain neuralgic points were intended as a cure. Additionally, he also suffered from intestinal worms.
2004, X-ray pictures and CAT scans also revealed the presence of an arrow head in the Iceman's left shoulder. Since the entry wound didn't have time to heal while he was still alive, the scientists assume that Oetzi was fatally wounded by an arrow. This discovery has done much to illuminate the personal tragedy of the Iceman, but also raises more questions about the cause of his violent death.
In the summer of 2001, ten years after the mummy's discovery, the Iceman was briefly "thawed out" under controlled conditions by a team of researchers in Bolzano/Bozen in order to extract various tissue samples for further scientific examination. These samples were passed on to independent institutes for analysis. Some of the findings of these examinations have already been publicized, while others are still waiting to be made public.
The DNA analysis of the Iceman's stomach contents, carried out by Professor Franco Rollo of the University of Camerino/Rome, has already been published. According to the results, the Iceman had eaten venison, forest berries, and einkorn (a natural variety of wheat) - presumably in the form of a mush or bread - a few hours before his death.
A meal taken even longer prior to his death contained, among other things, fibers of mountain goat meat which the Iceman may have carried with him in the form of dried or smoked jerky.
Further, the examination of the thawed-out body revealed hitherto unnoticed unhealed cuts on his hands indicating that he had been involved in close-quarters fighting shortly before his demise.
On the other hand, additional investigations, e.g. of his dental enamel and of blood stains on the accompanying artefacts, have yet to be completed. In the examination of his dental enamel which Professor Wolfgang Müller of the Australian National University in Canberra is carrying out, the mineral content of his enamel will be compared with the minerals occurring in the southern Alpine region.
During the formation of a child's teeth in the first six months of his life, minerals from the local drinking water are deposited, via mother's milk, in both the deciduous teeth and in the buds of the permanent teeth. On the basis of the mineral composition of the Iceman's teeth, it will thus perhaps be possible to more exactly define his place of birth.
Preliminary results point to two places where the Iceman could have lived on the south side of the Alps: The Eisack Valley and the Vinschgau (while the find was made at the Tisen Yoke).
Finally, the anthropologist Tom Loy of Australia examined the DNA of blood stains on the accompanying artefacts. Loy determined the presence of DNA from the blood of four different persons.
The museum is still receiving an average of ten research requests per year on the most varied scientific topics and on the basis of which anthropologists and physicians are hoping to attain an even deeper understanding of the development or pathologies of one of our direct ancestors.