Carbon dating confirmed that — placing the man’s death somewhere between 375 B.C. and 210 B.C. The extraordinarily well-preserved state of what became known as the Tollund Man was due to the unique chemistry of the bog , with its lack of oxygen, cool temperatures and bacteria-unfriendly acidic environment.
How long was Tollund Man in the bog for?
Related: In photos: A look inside an Egyptian mummy
A chemical and protein analysis revealed that Tollund Man ate a fatty fish along with the porridge about 12 to 24 hours before he died.
Why were the bog bodies killed?
In his popular book The Bog People, Glob proposes that many bodies were brutally sacrificed in ritual killings to appease a fertility goddess . He and other experts speculate that the people of the Iron Age saw bogs as gateways to the spiritual world.
Why do bog bodies have red hair?
Most bog bodies are found in Northern Europe. However, peat ponds in Florida have also preserved the skeletons of ancient Native Americans. ... The hair on most bog bodies is red. They weren’t all redheads, however— the color is a result of hair’s chemical reaction with the acidic water in the bog.
What was Tollund Man’s last meal?
The results show that Tollund Man’s last meal consisted of a porridge with barley, flax, wild weed seeds, and some fish —fairly standard fare for bog bodies based on earlier analysis of 12 European Iron Age victims, who ate grain-based meals, sometimes with meat and berries.
What is the mystery of Tollund Man?
The Tollund Man is a naturally mummified corpse of a man who lived during the 4th century BC , during the period characterised in Scandinavia as the Pre-Roman Iron Age. He was found in 1950, preserved as a bog body, on the Jutland peninsula, in Denmark.
What happens if you fall in a bog?
The bog is called a quaking bog to indicate the instability of the surface , which will sink slightly beneath a weight. It is even possible to break through the vegetation into the water beneath. Both people and animals have drowned this way. Nonfloating bogs may also quake if the peat is thick and spongy.
Who killed the Tollund Man?
Tollund man died because he was murdered by being hanged . He was buried with a rope around his neck. This shows that it was a violent act and not an accident. It is most likely that Tollund man was killed by hanging.
Who found Tollund Man?
John Kauslund was 11 years old when Tollund Man was discovered in 1950. He is the son of Grethe Højgaard who, along with her husband and his brother, discovered Tollund Man.
Do bog bodies have skeletons?
The unifying factor of the bog bodies is that they have been found in peat and are partially preserved ; however, the actual levels of preservation vary widely from perfectly preserved to mere skeletons. ... The oldest fleshed bog body is that of Cashel Man, who dates to 2000 BCE during the Bronze Age.
What is the oldest bog body?
Experts say that the remains of Cashel Man are extremely well preserved for his age. Radiocarbon dating suggests that he is the earliest bog body with intact skin known anywhere in the world. He is from the early Bronze Age in Ireland about 4,000 years ago.
Is bog water safe to drink?
Drinking bog water without treatment will would likely cause acute diarrheal disease .
What did tollund man look like?
The head was almost shockingly well-preserved. The eyes were closed and so was the mouth – the look on his face was peaceful and solemn as if he was just sleeping. The hair was cut short, 1-3 cm long – the red colour of his hair is due to the influence of the bog water. We don’t know his original hair colour.
How did the Tollund Man get found?
His remains were uncovered in 1950 by villagers in the town of Tollund, Denmark, who were gathering peat for fuel. ... Like all the “bog people,” Tollund Man showed signs of a violent death. Nude but for a leather cap and wide belt around his waist, the body was discovered with a rope tightly wound around his neck .
What was in Tollund Man’s stomach?
Helbæk concluded that Tollund Man ate a porridge consisting mainly of barley, flax (Linum usitatissimum), and seeds of the wild plants gold-of-pleasure (Camelina sativa) and pale persicaria (Persicaria lapathifolia s.l.).
How old was the Tollund Man when he died?
A 30- to 40-year-old man at the time of his death, Tollund Man was hanged between 405 and 380 B.C.E., per Laura Geggel of Live Science. (The leather noose is still wrapped around his neck.)
