Lectures Session I: Molecular Studies A1 The 5,300-year-old Helicobacter pylori

A21 - Radiocarbon measurements around the Iceman
Walter Kutschera¹, Gernot Patzelt², Eva Maria Wild¹, Peter Steier¹, Andreas Lippert³, Kurt Nicolussi⁴, Klaus Oeggl⁵
1 University of Vienna, Faculty of Physics, VERA Laboratory, 1090-Vienna, Austria Waehringer Str. 17 Vienna Austria,

2 Patscher Str. 20, 6080 Innsbruck-Igls, Austria,

3 University of Vienna, Institute of Prehistoric and Histrorical Archaeology, 1190 Vienna, Austria

4 University of Innsbruck, Institute of Geography, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria

5 University of Innsbruck, Institute of Botany, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria

In 1991, 14C measurements of tissue and bone samples from the Iceman were performed in Oxford and Zuerich. They revealed that the Iceman had died between 3370 and 3100 BC (95.4 % probability range). The validity of the 14C calibration curve between 3500 and 3000 BC was later checked in Vienna with 14C measurements of absolutely dated tree-rings from a high-altitude stone-pine dendrochronology (Dellinger et al. 2004). Only small deviations from the global 14C calibration curve were found (17 ± 5 yr).During an extensive archaeological excavation in 1992, a large variety of materials were recovered at the discovery site of the Iceman, and a selected subset was 14C dated (Kutschera et al. 2014). While pieces of equipment associated with the Iceman confirmed the dates of the body, a number of botanical and animal specimens spread far outside the Iceman period. These results initiated a wider campaign of 14C dating of high-altitude sites throughout the Ötztal, where evidence for human presence was found (Kutschera et al. 2014).The Iceman lived some 5300 years ago, in the middle of the Holocene. Detailed studies of tree-line and glacier movements in the European Alps using dendrochronology, 14C dating and other cosmogenic radioisotopes (e.g. 10Be) revealed considerable variations during the last 10,000 years. Besides presenting the 14C results of the Iceman, the glacial variations and their implications on the climate in the Holocene will also be discussed.

References

F. Dellinger, W. Kutschera, K. Nicolussi, P. Schießling, P. Steier, E.M. Wild, A 14C calibration with AMS from 3500 to 3000 BC, derived from a new high-elevation stone pine chronology, Radiocarbon 46 (2004) 969-978.

W. Kutschera, G. Patzelt, E.M. Wild, B. Haas-Jettmar, W. Kofler, A. Lippert, K. Oeggl, E. Pak, A. Priller, P. Steier, N. Wahlmüller-Oeggl, A. Zanesco, Evidence for early human presence at high altitudes in the Ötztal Alps (Austria/Italy), Radiocarbon 56 (2014) 923-947.

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A22 - Climate and environmental changes in South Tyrol from the Ortles ice core since the time of the Iceman

P. Gabrielli^1,2, C. Barbante^3,4,5, G. Bertagna¹, M. Bertó³, L. Carturan⁶, R. Dinale⁷, G. Dreossi³, D. Festi⁸, V. Mair⁹, K. Oeggl⁸, R. Seppi¹⁰, B. Stenni³, D. Tonidandel^9
1 Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center, The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA

² School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University, 275 Mendenhall Laboratory, Columbus, USA

³ Department of Environmental Sciences, Informatics and Statistics, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, Venice-Mestre, Italy

⁴ Istituto per la Dinamica dei Processi Ambientali-CNR, Venice-Mestre, Italy

⁵ Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, Roma, Italy

⁶ Department of Land, Environment, Agriculture and Forestry, University of Padova, Agripolis, Legnaro, Italy

⁷ Ufficio Idrografico, Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy

⁸ Institute for Botany, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria

⁹ Ufficio Geologia e Prove materiali, Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano, Kardano, Italy

¹⁰ Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy

In 2011 four ice cores were extracted from the summit of Alto dell’Ortles (3859 m), the highest glacier of South Tyrol in the Italian Alps. This drilling site is located only 37 km southwest from where the ~5.2 kyrs old Tyrolean Iceman was discovered emerging from the ablating ice field of Tisenjoch (3210 m, near the Italian-Austrian border) in 1991. The excellent preservation of this mummy suggested that the Tyrolean Iceman was continuously embedded in coeval prehistoric ice and that additional ancient ice was likely preserved elsewhere in South Tyrol. Dating of the ice cores from Alto dell’Ortles based on ²¹⁰Pb, ³H, beta activity and ¹⁴C determinations, combined with an empirical model (COPRA), provides evidence of a chronologically ordered ice stratigraphy from the modern glacier surface down to the bottom ice layers with an age of 7 kyrs which confirms the hypothesis. Our results indicate that the drilling site was continuously glaciated on frozen bedrock since 7 kyrs BP. Absence of older ice on the highest glacier of South Tyrol is consistent with removal of basal ice from bedrock during the Northern Hemisphere Climatic Optimum (NHCO; 6-9 kyrs BP), the warmest interval in the European Alps during the Holocene. At the end of the NHCO temperatures started to decrease allowing the accumulation of cold ice on frozen bedrock. A short increase in precipitation at ∼7 kyrs BP could also have contributed higher accumulation and ice thickening on Alto dell’Ortles. Although high precipitation did not persist during the mid-Holocene, progressively more favourable glacial conditions characterized the Eastern Alps at the end of the NHCO and glaciers extended in general to lower elevations, including the Tisenjoch (3210 m) where the Tyrolean Iceman was buried in snow and ice since 5.2 kyrs BP.

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Lectures Session V: Radiology and Cause of Death


A23 - Der Mann aus dem Eis: ein radiologisches Resümee 25 Jahre nach Auffindung der Mumie / The Iceman: a radiological summary 25 years after his discovery

Patrizia Pernter¹, Paul Gostner²
1 Radiologie Krankenhaus Bozen Neumarktnerstr. 7 Montan (BZ) Italy,

2 Department of Radiodiagnostics, Central Hospital Bolzano, Italy St. Johanngasse 11 Bozen Italy

The summary of radiological recognizable anomalies, degenerative alterations of the skeleton and signs of pathologies on CXR and CT examinations.
Zusammenfassung der radiologisch erkennbaren Anomalien, degenerativen Veränderungen am Skelettsystem, Hinweis auf Erkrankungen anhand der Röntgenbilder und CT-Untersuchungen

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A24 - Latrogene Veränderungen am Mann aus dem Eis / Latrogenic modifications on the Iceman

Patrizia Pernter¹, Paul Gostner², Eduard Egarter-Vigl³, Albert Zink⁴
1 Radiologie Krankenhaus Bozen Neumarktnerstr. 7 Montan (BZ) Italy,

2 Department of Radiodiagnostics, Central Hospital Bolzano, Italy St. Johanngasse 11 Bozen Italy

3 Scuola Superiore Sanitaria Provinciale “Claudiana”, Via Lorenz Böhler 13, 39100 Bolzano, Italy.

4 EURAC Institute for mummies and the Iceman, Italy

On the basis of CXR and CT images analysis acquiered over the last 25 years we tried to identify iatrogenic and non iatrogenic alterations of the mummy, to order them chronologically and to subdivide them into: 1) damages during the recovery of the corpse; 2) decompositive alterations during mummification; 3) damages secondary to bioptic samples for research reasons
Anhand der Analyse der Röntgenbilder und CT-Bilder der vergangenen 25 Jahre haben wir versucht, die iatrogenen und nicht iatrogenen Veränderungen an der Mumie, chronologisch einzuordnen und sie in Zusammenhang zu bringen mit:- Verletzungen bei der Bergung der Mumie- umweltbedingten Zerfallserscheinungen- wissenschaftlich motivierten Gewebsprobenentnahmen mit Zuordung eventuell erbrachter Forschungsergebnisse

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A25 - Neue Erkenntnisse über den Gesundheitszustand des Mannes aus dem Eis / New radiological insights into the Iceman´s state of health

Paul Gostner¹, Patrizia Pernter²
1 Department of Radiodiagnostics, Central Hospital Bolzano, Italy St. Johanngasse 11 Bozen Italy,

2 Radiologie Zentralkrankenhaus Bozen, Italy

Im Jahre 2013 wurde die letzte CT-Kontrolle der Mumie „Ötzi“ im Krankenhaus Bozen durchgeführt. Dazu stand ein Gerät einer neuen Generation (dual-energy computet tomography) zur Verfügung. Bei der Durchsicht des Bildmaterials ergaben sich neue Erkenntnisse über den Gesundheitszustand des Mannes aus dem Eis. In diesem Kurzreferat wird darüber berichtet.
The last CT-tests on the mummy of "Ötzi" took place at Bolzano hospital in 2013 using the latest dual-energy-computed tomography. The immages revealed new information about the Iceman´s state of health and this will be explained in this short lecture.

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A26 - Checklist and Scoring System for the Assessment of Soft Tissue Preservation in CT Examinations of Human Mummies: Application to Ötzi

Stephanie Panzer¹, Patrizia Pernter², Albert R. Zink³

¹ Department of Radiology, Trauma Center Murnau, Germany and

Institute of Biomechanics, Trauma Center Murnau, Germany and Paracelsus Medical University, Salzburg, Austria

² Department of Radiodiagnostics, Central Hospital Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy

³ EURAC-Institute for Mummies and the Iceman, Bolzano, Italy

Structured reporting is emerging in clinical radiology. To transfer structured reporting also into the field of paleoradiology we recently developed a checklist and scoring system for the assessment of soft tissue preservation in CT examinations of human mummies (Panzer S, Mc Coy MR, Hitzl W, Piombino-Mascali D, Jankauskas R, Zink AR, Augat P. Checklist and Scoring System for the Assessment of Soft Tissue Preservation in CT Examinations of Human Mummies. PLoS One. 2015; 10(8):e0133364).

The aim of this presentation is to introduce the checklist by applying it to Ötzi.

The checklist contains 97 checkpoints and was divided into two main categories, “A. Soft Tissues of Head and Musculoskeletal System” and “B. Organs and Organ Systems”, each including various subcategories.

Basing on this checklist Ötzi revealed a very high soft tissue preservation status. Most of the checkpoints from subcategory A were present and more than half of the checkpoints from subcategory B. Compared to other mummies and mummy collections, Ötzi consistently revealed the highest total preservation scores.

In conclusion, the developed checklist allows for a standardized assessment and documentation of soft tissue preservation in whole-body CT examinations of human mummies. The scoring system facilitates a quantitative comparison of the soft tissue preservation status between single mummies or mummy collections. Basing on this method Ötzi revealed an extremely high soft tissue preservation status.

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A27 - Ötzi segmented

Chiara Villa, Niels Lynnerup
Dept. of Forensic Pathology, University of Copenhagen

CT-scanning is one of the most used non-invasive procedures to study mummies. The benefits are obvious as the radiological technique allows for a millimeter by millimeter, in side-out visualization of internal structures. This results in a high degree of documentation, and it allows a thorough study of anatomical structures, macroscopic organ pathology and lesions.

Ötzi has been CT-scanned several times, not least resulting in the observation of an arrow-head lodged in his right shoulder region. However, a full tissue-based segmentation has not been performed.

Using state-of-the-art software, we have initiated a full segmentation of the tissues and organs of Ötzi. This will allow 3D views of the singe tissues and organs, including a closer study of the arrow trajectory and the lesions suffered by Ötzi. The segmentation will allow for a better visualization of organs such as the brain, lung and heart and major vessels.

The 3D models resulted from segmentation process will be also 3D printed such as to have a real view of internal structures that otherwise would not be accessible. We will create actual copy of the arrow-head, the skull, the brain and other relevant structures.

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A28 - Re-evaluation of the cause of death of the Neolithic Iceman, c. 5300 BP

Oliver Peschel¹, Patrizia Pernter², Frank Rühli³
1 Institute of Forensic Medicine, University of Munich, Germany

2 Department of Radiology, Bolzano Hospital, Italy

3 Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zürich, Switzerland

The cause of death of the Neolithic Iceman, c. 5300 BP, has been controversially debated during the past 25 years. The most recent established theory has been proposed by Murphy et al. (2003) and more detailed by Pernter et al. (2007) showing the radiologic proof of a laceration of the left subclavian artery by an arrowshot, and subsequent internal bleeding to death. Additionally proposed - potentially lethal - lesions include a.o. of the neuro- and viscerocranium as well as brain contusion

The aim of this presentation is to review these proposed injuries of the Iceman with a particular forensic perspective.

All available imaging data (X-ray, CT) of the Iceman are analysed with a historic and modern forensic perspective. This includes re-evaluation of the type, localisation and pathophysiological impact of the major lesions; including a.o. the extent of bleeding, possible pain-related handicaps, possible infections, estimated time of survival and overall mortality outcome.

Additionally, based on these data, further diagnostic non-invasive and invasive evaluation procedures to be done on this unique mummy are proposed. This project is part of a larger case study co-lead by forensic profiling specialists.

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A29 - Behavioural analysis of the iceman murder case

Alexander Horn
OFA Bayern, Polizeipräsidium München, Deutschland

Behavioural Investigative Advice (BIA) is a criminalistic tool, which enables the investigators in major crime cases (homicide, rape, arson) to gain a deeper understanding of the crime. It is based mostly on objective information and supports the leading investigator by offering investigative suggestions based on the behaviour the offender displayed in committing the crime. Especially the assessment of the motive of the crime and the profile of the unknown offender are often of importance.

A multidisciplinary team used methods of BIA to reconstruct the events at the crime scene, to further understand the circumstances of the murder and to assess the motive of the homicide, the iceman fell victim to.

This analysis is based on the information gathered from the crime scene where the body was found, the objects that were found in the vicinity and the data from the (forensic) medical examinations as well as the now existing information about the victimology known about the iceman.

The main findings of the behavioural analysis of the iceman murder case will be presented.

References

Alison, Laurence & Rainbow, Lee (Hrsg.). 2011. Professionalizing Offender Profiling. London: Routledge, 2011

Horn, Alexander & Käppner, Joachim. 2014. Die Logik der Tat. München: Droemer Knaur, 2014

Musolff, Cornelia & Hoffmann, Jens (Hrsg.). 2006. Täterprofile bei Gewaltverbrechen. Heidelberg: Springer Medizin Verlag, 2006

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Lectures Session VI: Clothing and Tools &Miscellaneous


A30 - The Iceman lithic toolkit: raw material, technology, typology and use

Ursula Wierer¹, Simona Arrighi², Stefano Bertola³, Guenther Kaufmann⁴, Annaluisa Pedrotti⁵, Jacques Pelegrin⁶
1 Soprintendenza Archeologia della Toscana, Firenze via della Pergola, 65 Firenze Italy,

2 Dip. di Scienze Fisiche, della Terra e dell’Ambiente - UR Preistoria e Antropologia, Università degli Studi di Siena, Italy

3 Institut für Geologie und Paläontologie, Arbeitsgruppe Hochgebirgsarchäologie und Quartärökologie, Universität Innsbruck, Austria

4 Südtiroler Archäologiemuseum, Bozen, Italy

5 Dipartimento di Lettere e Filosofia, Università degli Studi di Trento, Italy

6 CNRS - UMR 7055 Préhistoire et Technologie, MAE, Université Paris Ouest Nanterre

The Iceman’s artefact assemblage is a rather unique case in the archaeological research. Considering that it represents the personal tool set used by a specific person for daily activities during the last period of his life, the single tools and the complex as a whole are a mean to investigate the story of the owner, Ötzi - his activities and habits, his technical know-how, the territorial and environmental context he was living in – in order to reconstruct aspects of his individual history and to gain knowledge about his cultural and social background.In this light new analyses are being conducted on the elements of Ötzi’s equipment which are made from chert or are related to chert working: the retoucher, the dagger blade, the two arrowheads and the three lithic instruments contained in his belt-bag. The different steps of the tool-life, from production to the last phase of modification and use (chaîne opératoire), are investigated in the frame of an interdisciplinary research project headed by the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology. Analysis of the lithic raw material based firstly on the identification of the geological formations are carried out to identify the chert provenance areas. The methods and techniques used to knap the chert, from the detachment of the blanks to the repeated resharpening of the tools, are investigated through a technological study which allows furthermore to evaluate the knapper’s level of technical skill. A use-wear study, carried out with a 3D video-microscope and followed by a dedicated experimental program, aims at understanding the different functions of the lithic implements. Finally, typological comparisons are going to verify the presence of comparable tool types in the contemporaneous contexts of the Alpine area.

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A31 - For a Cultual Geography of “The Iceman”: Raw Materials, Places of Worship and Ideology of the Warrior Ancestor between Alto Adige and the Lessini Mountains

Paola Salzani¹, Umberto Tecchiati²
1 Università degli Studi di Trento, Dipartimento di Lettere e Fiolosofia, Laboratorio di preistoria "B. Bagolini" Italy,

2 Soprintendenza Provinciale ai Beni culturali di Bolzano - Alto Adige, Ufficio Beni archeologici, BOLZANO, Italy

The reserach on Ötzi developed in the last 25 years aims at situating its individual event within a wider historical and cultural context, capable also of defining its identity; however, the fragmentary nature of the available archaeological documentation for the Copper Age in the Southern Alps makes its cultural classification problematic.The analysis of the raw materials (flint, copper) and of the artifact typologies found at the Giogo di Tisa underline the existence of a wide network of relations, first of all in the Souther Alps, which also influence the partaking of this area in the early elaboration of a common ideology of the statues menhir and the warrior ancestor.This essay analyzes, for a comparison, two control areas (the Eisack Valley and the Lessini Mountains) which were associated, between the second half of the Fourth Millenium and the End of the Third Millenium, through cultic evidence and relations in the trade of raw materials, firstly flint.In particular, the cultic site of Varna near Bressanone and Arano in the Illasi Valley (Verona) allow to graps the first rising and the development of site centered on the offer of weapons (arrow heads, daggers), human remains and burned animals (Varna), and characterized by structured areas (Varna, Arano) which, in the case of Arano, take a triangular form typical of contemporary copper dagger (Copper 2). In these and other similar cultic sites, the male component in the offerings and in the spirituality underpinning it appears as evident.Therefore, between the Alto Adige and the Lessini Mountains, the circulation of flint and the distribution of common handicrafts (scaly ‘a squame’ pottery, Remedello-style pottery forms, copper artifacts such as axes and halberd) take place in the context of a more complex and very long-term process of cultural sharing, which affects also the spheres of mindset, ideology and spirituality.

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A32 - A whole mitochondria analysis of the Tyrolean Iceman’s leather provides insights into the animal sources of copper age clothing

Niall O'Sullivan¹, Matthew D. Teasdale², Valeria Mattiangeli², Frank Maixner¹, Ron Pinhasi³, Daniel G. Bradley², Albert Zink¹
1 Institute for Mummies and the Iceman, Eurac research Viale Druso, 1 / Drususallee 1 Bolzano Italy

2 Smurfit Institute of Genetics, University of Dublin, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland

3 School of Archaeology, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland

The attire of the Tyrolean Iceman, a 5,300-year-old natural mummy from the Ötzal Italian Alps, provides a surviving example of ancient manufacturing technologies. Research into his garments has however, been limited by ambiguity surrounding their source species. This presentation will show a targeted enrichment and sequencing of full mitochondrial genomes sampled from his clothes and quiver, which elucidates the species of production for nine fragments. Results indicate that the majority of the samples originate from domestic ungulate species (cattle, sheep and goat), whose recovered haplogroups are now at high frequency in today's domestic populations. Intriguingly, the hat and quiver samples were produced from wild species, brown bear and roe deer respectively. Combined, these results suggest that Copper Age populations made considered choices of clothing material from both the wild and domestic populations available to them. Moreover, these results show the potential for the recovery of complete mitochondrial genomes from degraded prehistoric artefacts using next generation sequencing of DNA markers of interest that have been captured in-solution.

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A33 - The archaeochemistry of the artefacts and associated remains of Ötzi the Iceman

Carney D. Matheson¹, M-A. Veall^1,2, S. Kelso¹, K.K Vernon¹
1 Department of Anthropology, Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada

2 Department of Archaeology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom

Over the past 25 years there has been a tremendous amounts of research on Ötzi and his associated remains. However there has been very little on the analysis of his artefacts from the perspective of usewear and residue. Although there are many descriptions of the various associated remains with the iceman there are only a small number of researchers that have analysed these remains focusing on residue analysis. These previous reports include the unpublished work of Loy and a few others focusing on the hafting material (Sauter et al. 2000 ), bow (Baugh et al. 2006), arrows (Brizzi and Brizzi 2012), axe (Loy 1998) and knife (Loy 1998). Here we have analysed the chemical traces in the residues of Ötzi’s artefacts using chemical methods and combined this data using the traditional approaches of residue analysis. This has allowed us to expand our interpretations beyond that of Loy’s to provide a better understanding of the tools and associated remains and how they have been used. This all supports the utilitarian use of these artefacts and the association between tools and artefacts within Ötzi’s possession.
References

Baugh D, Brizzi V, and Baker T. 2006. Ötzi's Bow. Primitiveways. p 1-7.

Brizzi V, and Brizzi A. 2012. “Otzi, During His Last 24 To 48 Hours Was Probably Involved In A Really Awful Battle For Survival. Not Against The Natural Elements But Against His Fellow Men.” Arrowhead Collecting On The Web 4(6):3-11.

Loy T. 1998. Blood on the Axe. New Scientist 159(2151):40-43.

Sauter F, Jordis U, Graf A, Werther W, and Varmuza K. 2000 Studies in organic archaeometry I: identification of the prehistoric adhesive used by the “Tyrolean Iceman” to fix his weapons. ARKIVOC 5:735-747.

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