Lindow man
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Lindow Man is the name given to the body of an Iron Age man, discovered in a bog near Manchester in 1983 by peat-cutters. Lindow man is kept freeze dried for preservation and is now on display in The British Museum
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The findings
The body (known as a bog body) was so well-preserved that its finders in 1983 first called the police thinking it was a recent burial. Further investigation at the site in 1984 revealed that the body's legs and pelvis were missing, but that the upper torso and arms remained. Initially, the body was informally called Pete Marsh before his official name was decided upon.
Scientific analysis
Forensic analysis has revealed many interesting details about his body and how he may have died. In life, scanning electron microscopy revealed, his beard and moustache hairs had "stepped" ends, the indication of a trimming with fine shears rather than with a single knife or razor blade. His well-muscled symmetrical body revealed that he had not been hardened by manual labor, and his nails were groomed, suggesting that he was of elite standing (Ross and Robins 1989). He wore a foxfur armband.
Archeaological interpretation
Lindow man is believed to have died sometime between 500 BC and 300 AD, and is most notable for the manner in which he died. His killing is supposed to have begun with three blows to the head, followed by one incision into his throat. Lastly, a knotted cord fitted tightly to the neck and twisted, was found around his neck. He was found face down into an already mature bog at Lindow Moss. All of the foregoing may be suggestive of ritual slaying. Opinion is divided as to whether this was a human sacrifice, an execution or both. In general there are doubts over how common the practice of human sacrifice was among the Celts, as almost all available accounts were written by their enemies. However, this is still regarded as the most likely reason for his killing.
The bog's acidity had preserved the contents of his stomach: his last meal consisted largely of burnt cereal grains, wheat, bran, and barley, implying a sacrificial offering rather than an ordinary supper. The presence of mistletoe pollen in the victim's stomach is highly suggestive, given the many Druidical associations with mistletoe. Mistletoe is a poisonous plant known to cause convulsions, and is unlikely to have been ingested accidentally. The manner of death is also well-documented in later Celtic commentaries.
Other finds
The finding of Lindow Man was not the only instance of human remains being discovered within Lindow Moss. The previous year, in 1983, the same peat workers uncovered a partially decomposed skull. Following the preliminary forensic report, the police concluded that the skull was that of a European female between the ages of 30 and 50, prompting a local man to confess to the murder of his wife some 20 years earlier. Peter Reyn-Bardt confessed that he had indeed killed his wife, dismembered her, and buried her in the Lindow Moss bog. Subsequently, the Oxford University Research Laboratory for Archaeology carbon-dated the skull and determined that the skull was not that of a woman, but of a man who had died almost 2000 years earlier. Based on the strength of his confession, however, Mr. Reyn-Bardt was convicted of murder. [1].
See also
References
- Ross, Anne and Don Robins. 1989. The Life and Death of a Druid Prince. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0671741225
- An excellent document for the historical reasoning, and some archaeological reasoning, for the ideas of Lindow Man's social status, and suspected reasons for death. While not an exhaustive overview of the archaeological procedures used in the uncovering of the peat bog body, Ross and Robins attempt to provide insights to the Celtic and Druidic worlds of Lindow Man's age.