Deposits of different origin in the lungs of the 5,300-year-old Tyrolean Iceman

Abstract

Deposits in the lung of the Late Neolithic Tyrolean Iceman were studied with a combination of different methods of analytical electron microscopy. Numerous anthracotic areas with plentiful inhaled soot particles were found in the lung; these most probably derived from open fires in houses. Between the soot particles tiny mineral crystals (mainly muscovite) were identified, which may indicate that the Tyrolean Iceman lived in a muscoviterich area. Furthermore, illite, quartz, and a plagioclase (andesine), which are also minerals in the crystalline rocks of the Otztal Alps, were found. Additionally, organic material, which may represent inhaled threshing residues, was present in the anthracotic areas. As threshing residues and seeds in husk also were detected in the Iceman's belongings, some kind of rustic occupation seems probable. Outside of the anthracotic areas, vivianite and hydroxyapatite crystals were detected. Because of their separate location, and as vivianite is also described in the Iceman's skin, these minerals seem to have crystallized during his 5,300 years of storage in the high mountains.