Anthropologists have breakthrough on Otzi the Iceman’s tattoos

NEW tattoos found on a prehistoric mummy have reopened the debate about the role of tattoos in prehistoric times.

A researcher prepares to take samples of the 5,300yr-old mummy known as Oetzi (otzi) in this pic released by the /South /Tyr...

IN 1991, two German tourists were hiking in the Ötzal Alps on the border between Austria and Italy when they stumbled across the remains of Europe’s oldest natural human mummy.

Thanks to the icy environments preserving the body in such good condition, anthropologists were able to determine “Otzi the Iceman” lived around 5,300 years ago.

They were also able to establish he was 45 years old at the time of his death and suffered from heart disease, Lyme disease, tooth decay, and joint pain.

However, the most fascinating find came after anthropologists discovered a number of tattoos on the mummy — making them the oldest tattoos ever documented in the world.

In the years following his discovery, various studies set out to itemise the skin markings, although an exact number was never able to be determined.

This all changed following a recent study by Marco Samadelli and his colleagues from the South Tyrol Museum of Archeology in Italy.

With the aid of an innovative photographic technique developed by the art world, researchers have been able to show up all the tattoos on the mummy, while also stumbling upon a previously unknown work on his rib cage in the process.

“This tattoo is very difficult to make out with the naked eye because his skin has darkened so much over time. The latest sophisticated photographic technology has now enabled tattoos in deeper skin layers to be identified as well,” researchers wrote on their website.

To locate all the tattoos, Samadelli photographed the mummy’s body from different angles using a camera with specialised lenses for determining whether an artist painted over another painting on the same canvas.

As a result, tattoos no longer recognisable to the human eye were able to be shown up with great precision.

A total of 61 tattoos consisting of lines from 0.7 to four centimetres in length were discovered on the mummy’s body.

Most of the work found was arranged in groups of two, three or four parallel lines and there was even the inclusion of two crosses.

Since a large number of the Iceman’s tattoos were found located near classic acupuncture points, it was previously suggested they were applied as part of a treatment for joint pain.

However, researchers have said the newly discovered tattoos on the lower right-hand side of the rib cage seem to discredit this theory because it isn’t located near a joint.

While still having no real answers, researchers said the newly discovered tattoos on the rib cage have now reopened the debate about the role of tattoos in prehistoric times.

“This investigation has given researchers a new piece to add to the jigsaw puzzle when trying to tease out whether prehistoric tattoos had a therapeutic, symbolic or religious significance,” they wrote.

The findings were published January 20 in the Journal of Cultural Heritage.