Geoforensic case study: Ötzi Ice Man by Prof. Cynthia Burek
At the last meeting Prof Burek gave a fascinating talk about forensics used in the untangling of the case regarding Ötzi the Iceman a 5,300-year-old glacier mummy recovered at the Tisenjoch (South Tyrol Italy) in 1991.
The talk commenced by prof. Burek describing the history of the development of forensic science in general and that of geoforensics in particular.
One of the fundamental principles in forensic geology was devised by Dr Edmund Locard (1877-1966) when he became interested in dust being transferred during a crime. It was Locard who suggested that whenever two objects come into contact, there is always a transfer of material and it was this idea that led to the fundamental idea that every contact leaves a trace. He also set up his own police lab in his attic in Lyon in 1910. The science developed over time as methods and technology has improved and now forensic geologists are routinely used on cases.
Geoforensics (forensic geology/forensic geoscience) may be described as follows:
The application of geoscience information and methods to investigations which may come before a court of law.
It’s boundaries are not clearly defined
Mainly concerned with rocks, sediments, minerals, soils and dusts and also man-made materials where natural materials are an essential part eg. cement or bricks.
Can cover air and water
Geoscience is often used in environmental forensic cases.
Its main uses being in identifying material for a match and to indicate timing of an event. The purpose of a forensic geologist at a crime scene is to collect geological samples which may include samples of, for example, minerals, soils, sediments, rocks, or natural building materials (e.g. sand, gravel, building stone and slate) or material that is derived from geological raw material (e.g. glass, bricks, concrete, plaster board or tiles).
The body of Ötzi was found by two German hikers in 1991, whilst walking in the Ötztal Alps near the Austrian and Italian borders. His removal from the ice was difficult which led to some damage of the corpse. His remains were delivered to the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Innsbruck, Austria. He was moved to Italy where he was kept in a freezer at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Bolzano, Italy.
Not much research was done on the remains for about 25 years, after which forensic experts were brought in to unravel the mystery. Unlike mummies from dry climates, the organs, tissues, bones, and skin of this “wet mummy” were intact, right down to the contents of his stomach, which allowed a very detailed study to be undertaken.
The findings showed that he was about 45 years old, 5’3’’-5’5” tall, weighed 50kg, and suffered from arthritis: gallstones and whipworms. He had old wounds consisting of a frost-bitten little left toe and broken ribs. He also had very fresh wounds of a badly cut right palm inflicted less than 48 hours previously.
He had 61 tattoos from head to foot which were the oldest tattoos ever found by about 2000 years. These were located in areas of joints and spine and may have been at acupuncture treatment points.
Pollen analysis discovered 30 different types of pollen in his gut. These findings suggested that he died in spring or early summer. That in the 2 days before he died, he had traveled from an elevation of 6,500 ft down to the valley floor at about 5,000 ft, and then back up into the mountains at 10,500 ft. He had consumed ibex meat, einkorn wheat, fatty bacon or cheese, and flowering plants in one meal, and red deer meat and grass or cereal in another. His last meal was eaten about 30 minutes before he died.
In 2001, a CT scan revealed a flint arrowhead in his left shoulder, and a puncture at the same spot was found when his coat was examined. This led to his death. Thus he was murdered.
Recent DNA analysis has revealed that Ötzi had dark skin and dark eyes. They also found that 92% of his ancestry comes from early Anatolian farmers who migrated out of modern-day Turkey about 8000 years ago. This is the highest percentage of Anatolian heritage yet recorded in an ancient European from Ötzi’s time. DNA also shows that he is most closely related to the inhabitants of Sardinia.
He had a copper-bladed axe which was new technology that required special skills to extract and process the metal. This discovery drove our understanding of the Copper Age back by 1000 years.
The use of multi-disciplinary forensic techniques shows just how even the most coldest of cases can sometimes be unravelled.
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