Thread by @MikeStuchbery_

Let’s talk about bog bodies. Let’s talk about what’s to see. Let’s talk about all the good things and the bad things they could be... THREAD 1/

Among all the kinds of burials that archaeologists encounter, there is one that seems to be localised to northern Europe - very possibly because of a unique landscape feature found there. That is to say, peat bogs, consisting of dead wetland vegetation & moss. Yum. /2

There’s very little that we can say we truly know about the Bronze and Iron Age cultures of Europe, but we can reasonably be assured that they considered bogs to be either sacred or special - a ‘liminal space’, if you want to get all wanky about it, somewhere ‘between worlds’. /3

Archaeologists have been pulling purposefully-damaged swords, mirrors, jewelry and other trinkets of out bogs, both present and former, for decades. The simplest explanation is, those who put it there were involved in an act of worship - bogs were used as ritual spaces. /4

Swords and metal trinkets are cool, but the real treasure of bogs across Europe are gnarly bog bodies they periodically give us. These are bodies of Bronze & Iron Age people, usually exhibiting signs of execution, preserved by time, pressure & anaerobic conditions in the bog. /5

The classic bog body - due to incredible preservation - is ‘Tollund Man’, found in Denmark, 1950. He was unearthed near the town of Silkeborg & partly rest in the Silkeborg Museum. Aged somewhere about 35 when he died b/w 300 or 400 years BCE, he shows signs of being hanged. /6

An autopsy found that he was relatively healthy at the time of death, and that he’d probably died sometime in the winter or spring, judging by the kind of porridge he had consumed prior to death. Apart from that, there’s very little else we know about him for sure. /7

As it turns out, another bog body was found nearby 12 years before. ‘Elling Woman’, also showed signs of hanging, around age 25, sometime about 300 BCE. She’s also now at Silkeborg Museum. It’s thought that both were ritual sacrifices, perhaps at a time of severe hunger. /8

Ritual sacrifice is a common thread of bog bodies that have been found in Ireland. The ‘Old Croghan Man’, found in 2003, shows an amazing amount of violence - beheaded, cut in half, arms broken and stab wounds under the nipples. They really wanted him dead! /9

‘Cashel Man’, found in 2011 shows similar violence. His arms were broken, as was his back and stakes were used to pin him down in the bog. Both are thought to be local kings who, according to custom, were executed during times of bad harvest. Shit gig. /10

Wasn’t always significant figures who ended up as bog sacrifices. ‘Yde Girl’, found in the Netherlands in 1897, shows she suffered from scoliosis & would have had trouble walking. She was stabbed & strangled around 1st century CE & may have been unconscious when it happened. /11

‘Kayhausen Boy’ who died somewhere between 300 - 400 BCE, and who was found near the village of the same name in 1922, also showed signs of a disability. An infection mean that he too couldn’t walk, and this is probably why he was chosen to be stabbed and placed in the bog. /12

Sometimes only heads get found. ‘Osterby Man’ was found near Osterby in Germany in 1948. He was found in a leather sack, & the bog preserved the man’s hairstyle, identifying him as Suebi & around 60 years old. He was killed sometime in the 1st or 2nd century after Christ. /13

There doesn’t seem to be a guiding principle by which Bronze and Iron Age peoples in Northern Europe were chosen for sacrifice. The powerful and those dealing with a disability were just as likely to end up in the peat-brown waters. /14

What we do know is that human sacrifice in bog land seems to have featured significantly in the belief systems of Europeans for hundreds of years. By send people through these ‘liminal spaces’ they were ensuring good harvests, success in battle and protection from illness. /15

In a way, however, those chosen for sacrifice have now achieved a kind of immortality. Bog bodies have been giving us a clearer picture of the health, diet and physicality of our ancestors. As technology increases, we’ll continue to learn more. /16

I should note - there’s heaps more to say about bog bodies, including those dating from the medieval and modern periods - yes there are some! Perhaps in a future thread… /17

If you’re looking for an easy introduction to the world of bog bodies, the @SmithsonianMag has an excellent article here. /18 smithsonianmag.com/science-nature…

For a slightly more academic approach to the subject, you might like this thesis that explores ritual, mechanics of preservation and meaning, by Maximillian A. Iping-Petterson from the University of Leiden. /19 openaccess.leidenuniv.nl/bitstream/hand…

Finally, if you want to check out the home of ‘Tollund Man’ and ‘Elling Woman’, you can learn more about the Silkeborg Museum here. /20 museumsilkeborg.dk/?AreaID=14

Thanks for listening in. If you’ve got any historical subjects or discoveries you’d like me to tackle, let me know. Always up for getting mucky amongst the dead things! /FIN