The BoDY
When, Where, How the Body was Found
On the 6th of May, 1950 two brothers by the names of Viggo and Emil Hojgaard had been cutting peat in the Bjaeldskov peat bog, located in the village of Tulland, Denmark. After some time, the brothers came across a body and, due to its remarkable preservation, believed it to belong to a recent murder victim; calling the police to the scene shortly after. The police, who knew the history of the bog well, with two other ancient corpses being found in less than 50 years, called archaeologists to the scene to investigate further. Experts would later conclude that the corpse nicknamed Tollund Man was over 2000 years old.
On the 6th of May, 1950 two brothers by the names of Viggo and Emil Hojgaard had been cutting peat in the Bjaeldskov peat bog, located in the village of Tulland, Denmark. After some time, the brothers came across a body and, due to its remarkable preservation, believed it to belong to a recent murder victim; calling the police to the scene shortly after. The police, who knew the history of the bog well, with two other ancient corpses being found in less than 50 years, called archaeologists to the scene to investigate further. Experts would later conclude that the corpse nicknamed Tollund Man was over 2000 years old.
The Body as it is Today
As such well preserved ancient remains are so incredibly rare, extensive research went underway immediately after the discovery of the corpse which left Tollund man in pieces and decaying due to the sudden exposure of an oxygen rich environment filled with decomposing bacteria. Since the body was discovered during the 1950's (when ethical practices were still being developed and was a recent phenomena), the ethical issues involved with separating the body was not taken into consideration as well as it would have had the body been found in the 21st century. Due to the sudden exposure to the outside environment, Tollund man's corpse deteriorated and decayed quickly and the only parts of the original body which scientists decided to preserve were his head and foot, a cast of the remainder of the body parts was made and his real head and foot are attached to this reconstruction which allows for the public to see the body in the condition it was originally found in. The body can now be found in Silkeborg museum in Denmark. |
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The Life and Death of Tollund Man
It is believed that Tollund man was an ordinary man (not of a high class) who was estimated to be in his late 30’s to early 40’s at the time of his death, an examination of the body revealed he was around 160 cm which was above average height for the time, although it is believed that he shrunk in the bog significantly over the 2000 years he was buried and so may have been taller. Tollund man was found with a rope tied in a noose around his neck, the most likely theory of his death was that he was sacrificed to the Gods due to the fact that he was not cremated as most people were in his society, the incredibly good treatment he received post death which suggests he was not merely a common criminal and his burial in the sleeping position can be seen as a sign of respect only reserved for those who served a major purpose in society (in his case, a sacrifice most likely to bring in a good harvest). Although it is certain Tollund man died of asphyxiation there is no conclusive evidence as to whether he was strangled or hanged by the rope that was found around his neck as his vertebrae are not severed as they normally would be with a hanging death, however, the swelling of his tongue is consistent to that of that of someone who was hanged.
The contents of his stomach and intestines were thoroughly examined upon his discovery and found that his last meal had already passed through into his intestines and so they time his last meal at least 12 hours before his death. No meat was found in his intestines but found the remnants of up to 40 different types of seeds and grains, some of them could not have been readily available to Tollund man and so it is believed his meal was specially prepared for an event, supporting the theory of his sacrificial death.
It is believed that Tollund man was an ordinary man (not of a high class) who was estimated to be in his late 30’s to early 40’s at the time of his death, an examination of the body revealed he was around 160 cm which was above average height for the time, although it is believed that he shrunk in the bog significantly over the 2000 years he was buried and so may have been taller. Tollund man was found with a rope tied in a noose around his neck, the most likely theory of his death was that he was sacrificed to the Gods due to the fact that he was not cremated as most people were in his society, the incredibly good treatment he received post death which suggests he was not merely a common criminal and his burial in the sleeping position can be seen as a sign of respect only reserved for those who served a major purpose in society (in his case, a sacrifice most likely to bring in a good harvest). Although it is certain Tollund man died of asphyxiation there is no conclusive evidence as to whether he was strangled or hanged by the rope that was found around his neck as his vertebrae are not severed as they normally would be with a hanging death, however, the swelling of his tongue is consistent to that of that of someone who was hanged.
The contents of his stomach and intestines were thoroughly examined upon his discovery and found that his last meal had already passed through into his intestines and so they time his last meal at least 12 hours before his death. No meat was found in his intestines but found the remnants of up to 40 different types of seeds and grains, some of them could not have been readily available to Tollund man and so it is believed his meal was specially prepared for an event, supporting the theory of his sacrificial death.