The Evolution of the Theory of Ötzi

Over the past thirty years, knowledge of the preservation of fossils has increased

tremendously. This has been especially apparent in scientists’ understanding of fossils containing

soft tissues and other organic material. Although it is rare for fossils to be preserved containing

these organic materials, more and more examples have been found and studied in the past few

decades. An example of this was with the discovery of Ötzi the Iceman, a homo sapien found

fully preserved in a melting glacier in the Italian / Austrian Alps in 1991. When Ötzi was first

discovered, the scientific community was shocked. Ötzi was the first specimen to be discovered

in such a well-preserved state that scientists first believed that Ötzi’s preservation was an

anomaly (Pilø, 2023). Scientists at the time did not agree on the conditions allowing the

preservation. Some scientists believed that Ötzi had to have been buried under a glacier in a

gully –a gorge in a mountain created by the movement of water– shortly after death, allowing for

the preservation to take place. According to this theory, Ötzi died during the winter, which

allowed for his body to freeze dry shortly after death. The area he died in was then covered by a

large glacier, preserving the body further (Ouellette, 2022). Finally, as the body was discovered

in a depression between two mountains, the movement from the glacier did not damage the

preservation. Another theory stated that Ötzi was not initially covered in ice, but rather he was

exposed until he was covered by a glacier, which held him for most of his preservation.

However, in recent years, the consensus has shifted due to advances in knowledge of the

environment Ötzi died in (Pilø, 2023).

Many scientists had taken an interest in Ötzi long after his initial discovery. As his

discovery was believed to be one of a kind, these scientists were excited to study everything
there was to study about him. Even long after the initial theories surrounding Ötzi’s life, death

and situation were made and publicized, archeologists such as Lars Pilø of Norway remained

determined to answer the remaining unanswered questions. Lars Pilø is a glacier archeologist,

who studies artifacts discovered in glaciers. When he first heard the theories about Ötzi, he was

skeptical. He was determined to disprove these theories with his own research. With an

exceptional knowledge of glaciers from his fieldwork in Norway, he was able to analyze the

findings and refine former theories (Pilø, 2023).

Contrary to the belief that the gully Ötzi died in was consistently covered by ice

throughout his entire preservation, it is now believed that the weather varied much more greatly,

allowing for thawing of the ice during some of the summers (Ouellette, 2022). Ötzi is now

believed to have died at the top of the gully. As the weather warmed during the spring and

summer months, the snow under him melted, allowing his body to settle deeper into the gulley

(Pilø, 2023). This is inconsistent with the original theories stating that once Ötzi was preserved

in the ice or glacier he was buried until right before he was discovered. At the time, it was

believed that Ötzi could only be fully preserved the way he was had he been fully submerged in

the glacier. Therefore, theories reflecting the current ones were not even considered. That entails

that the scientists had a more limited knowledge of the Earth’s environment over the past few

thousand years. An in-depth knowledge of the environment and weather patterns is essential in

understanding the way fossils get preserved. Without that base, the scientists were almost

shooting in the dark as they formed their initial theories.

Aside from the physical positioning of Ötzi and the knowledge of weather patterns at the

time, scientists evaluated the hundreds of artifacts that were discovered around the site. These

included tools and weapons, medicinal herbs, and clothes. Each of these artifacts provided
scientists with essential clues in determining the time of year as well as the way he died. As the

technology for radiocarbon dating improved, scientists started to date each of the artifacts, which

allowed them to refine their initial theories (Kuta, 2022).

One of the most important artifacts the scientists used in redetermining the date of Ötzi’s

death was in the fossils of plants discovered at the scene. Pollen was discovered at the scene,

allowing the scientists to reevaluate the approximate time of year of Ötzi’s death. After analysis

of the pollen, it was determined then that Ötzi died in the spring or summer, rather than the

winter in the snow, as originally thought (Kuta, 2022). The pollen was also a key factor in the

conclusion that rather than being consistently buried in ice, Ötzi and the surrounding area had

repeatedly thawed out during the springs and summers, allowing for these plants and pollen to

surface. This further confused the scientists, as it had been believed that the body could only be

so well preserved if it was fully preserved in ice for the entirety of its fossilization. With this new

realization, the scientists hoped that they would find other homo sapiens similar to Ötzi in other

places around the world (Bergstrøm, 2022).

The analysis of the artifacts found at the site did not only help scientists understand

Ötzi’s time and position of death, but also allowed for theories relating his means of death and

his lifestyle leading up to his death. Ötzi was discovered with a broken arrow nearby, which led

to the initial and most agreed upon conclusion that Ötzi was shot from behind (Vidale, 2016).

According to this theory he had been running away from another person, leading to the

assumption that Ötzi was not actually from the area that he was murdered in. As he got shot, he

started to stumble, allowing the attacker to catch up to him. Ötzi was then hit in the head with a

club, which resulted in an indentation in his skull found at his discovery. Therefore, Ötzi’s final

resting position was assumed to be one of him struggling and crawling towards the place he
eventually bled out. This is consistent with the blood stains discovered on some of the various

artifacts at the site.

Another possible theory of Ötzi‘s death that was considered was made after analyzing the

contents of his stomach. Ötzi’s last meal was discovered to be raw, cured meats, along with some

cereal and herbs. One of the herbs found in Ötzi’s stomach was a poisonous type of fern called

bracken fern (Geggel, 2018). This confused scientists as they wondered why Ötzi would

willingly eat a poisonous plant. Ötzi was also discovered to have hosted parasites, which may

have been the reasoning behind him eating the bracken. Bracken fern is edible if eaten in small

quantities and if prepared the correct way, however, as Ötzi was thought to be travelling at his

time of death he likely would not have had the time to cook the fern properly. The ferns in that

case would not have been edible. Despite this, the ferns and parasites discovered in Ötzi’s

digestion tract were not believed to be Ötzi’s official cause of death. The parasites and ferns

could have weakened him, which would have made it easier for his attacker to stalk him and

eventually defeat him.

Ötzi was believed to not have been a native of the Alps region that he was discovered in.

Ötzi’s teeth were analyzed for traces of the food he ate throughout his life up until his time of

death. With advances in the technology used to analyze tooth enamel, traces of Ötzi’s diet could

be determined from the age of three to five years old (Holden, 2003). From there, scientists could

match the diet to specific regions, starting near his resting place and expanding outwards. Based

on Ötzi’s diet it was determined that he spent most of his life in one region, near the Alps but

more south in Italy. His DNA was also matched with ethnic groups from present-day Italy,

further strengthening the theories. Despite Ötzi not being from the area it was determined that he

never left within one hundred kilometers of his hometown (Holden, 2003). That could be due to
the fact that there were no cars or means of long-distance travel at the time. As Ötzi lived in the

southern valleys, he may have been visiting the Alps region for hunting. He had been carrying

various tools such as a bow and arrow and an axe. His final meal also represented that as it was

very heavy in meat. His clothes were also made of animal skins, which indicates a strong

relationship with hunting.

While it may be impossible to know exactly Ötzi’s life patterns, diet, and final death, as

the technology evolves, and scientists form a deeper understanding of the environment and

culture Ötzi lived in, they be able to refine and evolve the theories and get closer and closer to

the actual outcome. Thirty years ago, the theories we have now would have been unimaginable.

In another thirty years the new theories may be ones that to us now seem impossible.

Works cited:

Bergstrøm, I. I. (2022, November 17). New research on 5300-year-old ötzi suggests there could

be more ice mummies out there. Sciencenorway. Retrieved from

suggests-there-could-be-more-ice-mummies-out-there/2105033

Geggel, L. (2018, July 12). Here’s what ötzi the Iceman ate before he was murdered.

LiveScience. Retrieved from

https://www.livescience.com/63044-otzi-mummy-last-supper.html

Holden, C. (2003, October 30). The Iceman is all Italian: Isotopic data track Ötzi’s origins and

peregrinations. Retrieved from

https://www.science.org/content/article/iceman-all-italian

Kuta, S. (2022, November 10). Rewriting the story of ötzi, the murdered Iceman.

Smithsonian.com. Retrieved from

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-true-story-behind-otzi-the-murdered-

iceman-180981103/#:~:text=In%20September%201991%2C%20German%20hikers,was

%20roughly%205%2C300%20years%20old.

Ouellette, J. (2022, November 15). Study: ötzi the Iceman probably thawed and refroze several

times. Study: Ötzi the Iceman probably thawed and refroze several times. Retrieved from

https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/11/study-otzi-the-iceman-probably-thawed-and-

refroze-several-times/
Pilø, L., Reitmaier, T., Fischer, A., Barrett, J. H., & Nesje, A. (2023). Ötzi, 30 years on: A

reappraisal of the depositional and post-depositional history of the find. The

Holocene, 33(1), 112–125. Retrieved from

https://doi.org/10.1177/09596836221126133

Vidale, M., Bondioli, L., Frayer, D. W., Gallinaro, M., & Vanzetti, A. (2016, September 1). Ötzi

the Iceman - Examining New Evidence from the Famous Copper Age Mummy.

Expedition Magazine tzi the Iceman Comments. Retrieved from

https://www.penn.museum/sites/expedition/otzi-the-iceman/