A facial reconstruction of Ötzi the Iceman. New evidence suggests he had male-pattern balding and was brown-skinned.
Image credit: Reconstruction by Kennis © South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology, Foto Ochsenreiter
In about 3,300 BCE, some 700 years after Bible literalist creationists believe the human population was reduced to just 8 survivors of a genocidal flood inflicted on the world by their 'loving' God, a brown-skinned man, possibly being pursued over the Alps north of Italy, fell into a glacier. He may have died before he fell or he may have died of his injuries from the fall, but a fresh arrow wound in his shoulder may have contributed to his death.
The significance of his genome is that is shows how far the human population of Europe had diversified into distinct groups each with a characteristic DNA signature - something that would not have been possible if the entire human population of the world had evolved from such a narrow genetic bottleneck. Not only had they diversified but had developed distinct cultures and life-styles.
Another significance of this research is that it shows how science is never certain, but constantly reassesses the evidence and revises its collective opinion when the evidence demands it.
Ötzi the IcemanFor the creationists who have been programmed to dismiss archaeological evidence with the lie that radiometric dating is always wrong:
Ötzi, also known as the Iceman, is a well-preserved mummy of a man who lived during the Copper Age, around 3300 BCE. He was discovered in the Ötztal Alps, hence the name "Ötzi," by German tourists on September 19, 1991, near the border between Austria and Italy. The mummy was found at an altitude of around 3,210 meters (10,530 feet) in the Schnalstal Glacier. Here are some key facts and details about Ötzi the Iceman:Overall, Ötzi the Iceman is a remarkable archaeological discovery that has provided invaluable insights into the lives of our ancient ancestors and their interactions with the environment and technology of their time.
- Discovery and Preservation: Ötzi's mummy was preserved due to the unique conditions of the glacier, which acted as a natural freezer. His body was naturally mummified over the centuries, allowing researchers to gain insights into his life and the environment he lived in.
- Age and Appearance: Ötzi was estimated to be around 45 years old at the time of his death. He stood about 1.6 meters (5 feet 3 inches) tall and had a stocky build. He had brown eyes, wore a beard, and had tattoos on various parts of his body, likely created by making small incisions and rubbing charcoal or other pigments into them.
- Clothing and Equipment: Ötzi's clothing included a coat made of woven grass and leather, a loincloth, leggings, a belt, and a hat. He also wore shoes made of grass and leather. He carried a variety of tools and equipment, including a copper-bladed axe, a flint knife, a quiver with arrows, a backpack, a birch bark container, and a wooden bow.
- Diet and Lifestyle: Examination of Ötzi's stomach contents and isotopic analysis of his teeth and bones provided insights into his diet. He primarily consumed a diet of meat (from ibex and red deer) and various grains and plants, including einkorn wheat. This indicates a diet typical of the time, as well as evidence of mobility in the alpine region.
- Health and Injuries: Ötzi's body revealed evidence of several injuries and health conditions. He had a number of broken ribs, possibly indicating a fall or accident. He also had wear-and-tear on his joints, suggesting a physically demanding lifestyle. Additionally, Ötzi had an arrow wound on his left shoulder that likely contributed to his death, as well as signs of head trauma.
- Copper Axe: One of Ötzi's most significant possessions was a copper-bladed axe, which is one of the earliest examples of metal use in human history. This suggests a level of sophistication in his society's technology and craftsmanship.
- Genetic Analysis: Ötzi's DNA has been extensively studied, providing insights into his ancestry and genetic traits. This analysis revealed that he had a genetic predisposition for cardiovascular disease, lactose intolerance, and a higher risk of certain autoimmune disorders.
- Cultural and Historical Significance: Ötzi's discovery has offered a unique window into the life of an individual from the distant past. Researchers have gained valuable information about ancient diets, clothing, tools, and health conditions. Ötzi has also helped to reconstruct aspects of Copper Age society, including trade routes and cultural practices.
- Exhibition and Research: Ötzi's mummy is preserved and displayed at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Bolzano, Italy. Researchers continue to study his remains using various advanced techniques to uncover more information about his life, death, and the world he lived in.
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How was Ötzi's body dated?Now a new DNA analysis by geneticists from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany, and the Eurac Research Institute for Mummy Studies, Bolzano, Italy, shows, Ötzi was an 'outsider', not from the local population, having ancestors who migrated to Europe from Anatolia about 4,900 years ago. The evidence is that he was from an isolated Alpine population that had little contact with the indigenous hunter-gatherers or the farmers who migrants into Europe from the Central Asian steppe.
Ötzi the Iceman's age and the approximate time of his death were determined through a combination of radiocarbon dating, dendrochronology (tree-ring dating), and other archaeological methods. Here's how these dating techniques were used to establish Ötzi's age:By combining the results of radiocarbon dating and dendrochronology, along with other archaeological evidence, scientists were able to establish a reliable age for Ötzi the Iceman and gain insights into the historical period in which he lived.
- Radiocarbon Dating: Radiocarbon dating, also known as carbon-14 dating, is a widely used method to determine the age of organic materials containing carbon. The technique relies on the fact that carbon-14 is a radioactive isotope that decays at a known rate over time. Once an organism dies, it stops acquiring new carbon-14, and the remaining carbon-14 begins to decay. By measuring the ratio of carbon-14 to carbon-12 in a sample, scientists can estimate how long it has been since the organism's death.
For Ötzi, researchers took samples of his body tissues, such as skin and bone, to measure the carbon-14 content. The radiocarbon dating analysis placed his time of death around 3300 BCE, which corresponds to the Copper Age.
- Dendrochronology (Tree-Ring Dating): Dendrochronology is a method of dating based on the analysis of tree rings. Trees form a new growth ring each year, and the patterns of these rings can be matched and cross-referenced among different trees to create a chronological sequence. This sequence can be used to date wooden objects made from trees by matching the tree rings in the object with the master chronology.
Ötzi's clothing and equipment included wooden components, such as his bow and arrow shafts. By analyzing the tree rings in these wooden items, researchers were able to determine the approximate years when the trees used to make them were felled. This provided additional support for the radiocarbon dating and helped to refine the estimate of Ötzi's age.
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The new analysis was carried out because there have been considerable refinements and improvements in techniques since the first analysis and because there are now many more ancient European genomes to compare his to.
The initial finding was that he had some ancestry from the Asian steppe migrants but that has now been shown to be due to contamination with modern DNA. As the Max Planck Institute news release explains:
Ötzi: dark skin, bald head, Anatolian ancestryMore details are given in the team's open access paper in Cell Genomics:
Research team used advanced sequencing technology to analyze Ötzi’s genome to obtain a more accurate picture of the Iceman’s appearance and genetic origins
AUGUST 16, 2023
Ötzi's genome was decoded for the first time more than ten years ago. This was also the first time the genome of a mummy had been sequenced. The results provided important insights into the genetic makeup of prehistoric Europeans. Advances in sequencing technology have now enabled a research team from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and Eurac Research to reconstruct Ötzi’s genome more accurately. The results of this recent analysis refine the Iceman’s genetic picture: compared to other contemporary Europeans, Ötzi’s genome has an unusually high proportion of genes in common with those of early farmers from Anatolia. And, contrary to previous findings, at the time of his death, Ötzi had advanced hair loss and may have even been bald. Furthermore, his skin was darker than previously thought. Ötzi’s genes also show a predisposition to diabetes and obesity.
The genetic makeup of most present-day Europeans has resulted mainly from the admixture of three ancestral groups: western hunter-gatherers gradually merged with early farmers who migrated from Anatolia about 8,000 years ago and who were later on joined by Steppe Herders from Eastern Europe, approximately 4,900 years ago.Since 2012, which is when Ötzi’s genome was sequenced for the first time, DNA sequencing technologies have advanced enormously. This new study reveals that compared to other contemporary Europeans, Ötzi’s genome had an unusually high proportion of genes in common with those of early farmers from Anatolia, that his skin was darker than previously thought, and that he was likely bald or had little hair on his head when he died.© South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology/Eurac/Marco Samadelli-Gregor Staschitz
The initial analysis of the Iceman’s genome revealed genetic traces of these Steppe Herders. However, the refined new results no longer support this finding. The reason for the inaccuracy: the original sample had been contaminated with modern DNA. Since that first study, not only have sequencing technologies advanced enormously, but many more genomes of other prehistoric Europeans have been fully decoded, often from skeletal finds. This has made it possible to compare Ötzi’s genetic code with his contemporaries. The result: among the hundreds of early European people who lived at the same time as Ötzi and whose genomes are now available, Ötzi’s genome has more ancestry in common with early Anatolian farmers than any of his European counterparts.
Ötzi’s ancestry and appearanceWe were very surprised to find no traces of Eastern European Steppe Herders in the most recent analysis of the Iceman genome; the proportion of hunter-gatherer genes in Ötzi’s genome is also very low. Genetically, his ancestors seem to have arrived directly from Anatolia without mixing with hunter gatherer groups.
Johannes Krause, co-author
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology
Leipzig, Germany.
The research team concludes that the Iceman came from a relatively isolated population that had very little contact with other European groups.
The study also yielded new results about Ötzi's appearance. His skin type, already determined in the first genome analysis to be Mediterranean-European, was even darker than previously thought.It's the darkest skin tone that has been recorded in contemporary European individuals. It was previously thought that the mummy's skin had darkened during its preservation in the ice, but presumably what we see now is actually largely Ötzi's original skin color. Knowing this, of course, is also important for the proper conservation of the mummy.
This is a relatively clear result and could also explain why almost no hair was found on the mummy.
Albert Zink, co-author
Eurac Research - Institute for Mummy Studies
Bolzano, Italy.
Our previous image of Ötzi is also incorrect regarding his hair: as a mature man, he most likely no longer had long, thick hair on his head, but at most a sparse crown of hair. His genes, in fact, show a predisposition to baldness. Genes presenting an increased risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes were also found in Ötzi's genome, however, these factors probably did not come into play thanks to his healthy lifestyle.
HighlightsTo summarise, then: here we have evidence of a diversified human population in Europe, just 700 years after the legendary flood when the human population was allegedly reduced to a very narrow genetic bottle-neck of just 8 people, at least 5 of whom were genetically related. Not only is such a narrow bottle-neck incompatible with the resulting population lasting more than a few generations before accumulated deleterious genes would have driven them to extinction, but such a degree of diversity in just a few hundred years is impossible from such a narrow starting range. Cultural and racial diversification require prolonged isolation, far longer than creationists believe the human population of Earth has had.
- High-coverage genome of the Iceman
- Unusually high Anatolian-farmer-related ancestry
- Dark skin and likely bald
Summary
The Tyrolean Iceman is known as one of the oldest human glacier mummies, directly dated to 3350–3120 calibrated BCE. A previously published low-coverage genome provided novel insights into European prehistory, despite high present-day DNA contamination. Here, we generate a high-coverage genome with low contamination (15.3×) to gain further insights into the genetic history and phenotype of this individual. Contrary to previous studies, we found no detectable Steppe-related ancestry in the Iceman. Instead, he retained the highest Anatolian-farmer-related ancestry among contemporaneous European populations, indicating a rather isolated Alpine population with limited gene flow from hunter-gatherer-ancestry-related populations. Phenotypic analysis revealed that the Iceman likely had darker skin than present-day Europeans and carried risk alleles associated with male-pattern baldness, type 2 diabetes, and obesity-related metabolic syndrome. These results corroborate phenotypic observations of the preserved mummified body, such as high pigmentation of his skin and the absence of hair on his head.
Graphical Abstract
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