A scientist has finally confirmed with 3D models that legendary ice man Otzi was indeed killed 5,300 years ago by an arrow.
Otzi, a 5,300-year-old mummified man, was found in 1991 in a glacier in the Alps between what is now Austria and Italy.
Since the discovery, Otzi has been examined by multiple teams of scientists, with new discoveries coming to light each time.
Now an expert claims it was the arrow that delivered the fatal blow, severing the nerve to his shoulder and hitting his major vessels.
Otzi, a 5,300-year-old mummified man, was found in 1991 in a glacier in the Alps between what is now Austria and Italy. A scientist has finally confirmed he was killed by an arrow
Since his discovery on 19 December 1991 by German hikers, Ӧtzi has provided window into early human history.
His mummified remains were uncovered in melting glacier in the mountainous border between Austria and Italy.
Thomas Bonfert, who is also an image editor and film director for Austrian public broadcaster ORF, investigated the world’s most famous mummified body for his doctoral thesis.
Dr Bonfert was mostly interested in finding undisputed proof that Otzi died from an arrow injury.
Dr Bonfert said: ‘For me, because of my theoretical background being on one hand a radiology technologist and on the other hand anthropologist, it was interesting to pick up this topic and to show whether this hypothesis is plausible or not using image-editing work.’
It quickly became clear for the scientist that Otzi was indeed shot in the pit in which he was later found.
Dr Bonfert said: ‘The hypothesis that the deadly shot hit him in the pit where he was found is more likely than that the shot came from a diagonal angle down.
‘Due to the location of the arrowhead in the tissue, it is to be assumed that large vessels were hit, the subclavian vein.
‘In addition to this, also the nerve cord which provides the shoulder was injured and the arm should have been paralysed after the shot.’
Since the discovery, Otzi has been examined by multiple teams of scientists, with new discoveries coming to light each time
Previously, a team of Italian scientists discovered what Otzi’s last meal was before he was shot.
Mummy specialist Albert Zink with the European Academy of Bolzano in Italy said meat fibres from a mountain goat were found in Otzi’s stomach.
He most likely ate dry-cured goat meat, which means he brought the food with him on his fatal journey.
It was possible to tell that the meat had not been cooked, which would have weakened the fibres.
Further stomach-content analysis showed that Otzi had a dairy-free diet, confirming DNA analysis that showed he was lactose-intolerant.
Since his discovery on 19 December 1991 by German hikers, Ӧtzi has provided window into early human history. His mummified remains were uncovered in melting glacier in the mountainous border between Austria and Italy
Mr Zink said: ‘It seems probable that his last meal was very fatty, dried meat – perhaps a type of Stone Age bacon.’
Otzi suffered from bad teeth, like many people of his era. His molars were decayed and had carious lesions. A front tooth had been damaged in an accident.
Evolutionary medic Roger Seiler added of Otzi’s periodontium, the tissue supporting the teeth: ‘The loss of the periodontium has always been a very common disease, as the discovery of Stone Age skulls and the examination of Egyptian mummies have shown. Otzi allows us an especially good insight into such an early stage of this disease.’
Archaeologists believe Ötzi, who was carrying a bow, a quiver of arrows and a copper axe, may have been a hunter or warrior killed in a skirmish with a rival tribe.
Otzi suffered from bad teeth, like many people of his era. His molars were decayed and had carious lesions. A front tooth had been damaged in an accident. He also had severe tooth decay (pictured) caused by sugar in his bread diet
A 3D reconstructions of his skull showed that he also suffered from plaque and that his teeth had started to come loose. Researchers say he was about 5ft 2.5 inches (159cm) tall
Researchers say he was about 5ft 2.5 inches (159cm) tall, 46 years old, arthritic and infested with whipworm – an intestinal parasite.
His perfectly preserved body is stored in his own specially designed cold storage chamber at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Italy at a constant temperature of -6°C (21°F).
Visitors can view the mummy through a small window.
Alongside his remains is a new Ötzi model created using 3D images of the corpse and forensic technology by two Dutch artists – Alfons and Adrie Kennis.
Ötzi was found on 19 September 1991 by two German tourists on the east ridge of the Fineilspitze in the Ötztal Alps on the Austrian–Italian border