// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhat did Borremose II say to Borremose I? You're a bog deal.
Borremose II | |
|---|---|
 Borremose II | |
| Born | Unknown |
| Died | c. 400 BCE Borremose, Himmerland, Denmark |
Body discovered | 1947 |
| Known for | Bog body |
Borremose II is an Iron Age bog body discovered in 1947 in the Borremose peat bog in Himmerland, Denmark. The individual was the second of three bog bodies recovered from Borremose between 1946 and 1948, and was found about 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) from the location where Borremose Man had been discovered the previous year.
The body was initially identified as male, but later study of the associated clothing led researchers to identify the individual as female, although decomposition made osteological identification difficult. Radiocarbon dating placed the remains at approximately 400 BCE. The body was found lying face down on a layer of birch bark, with three birch poles placed above it. A ceramic vessel and the bones of an infant were found nearby.
Discovery
[edit]The individual now known as Borremose II was discovered in 1947 in the Borremose peat bog in Himmerland, Denmark. She was found one year after Borremose Man, about 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) from the place where his body had been discovered.[1][2]
Borremose II was lying face down about 60 centimetres (24 in) below the surface of the bog.[1][2] When her remains were uncovered, a layer of birch bark was found directly beneath her. Three birch poles lay above her body.[1][3] The bones of an infant and a ceramic vessel were also found nearby.[4][2]
Borremose II was the second of three bog bodies discovered at Borremose between 1946 and 1948. Her findspot was recorded at 56°47′36″N 9°34′55″E / 56.79333°N 9.58194°E[5].
Condition
[edit]The skull was fractured and the brain was visible. The right leg was broken below the knee.[1][2]
Clothing and associated items
[edit]While the upper torso was naked, the lower body was wrapped in a cloak made of a four-layered twill fabric and a fringed shawl.[6] The large twill cloth overlapped at the front and was fastened with a leather thong threaded through pairs of holes along one edge, allowing archaeologists to reconstruct how it had originally been worn and estimate a waist circumference of about 70–75 cm.[6]
The garments closely resemble those found with the Huldremose Woman and the Store Arden Woman, among the best-preserved examples of early Iron Age women's dress.[6] Wear patterns on the large twill cloth suggest that it had previously been used as a man's cape before being deposited with the body.[6] These two garments are now on display at the National Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen.[6]
Because garments made from plant fibres rarely survive in acidic peat, it is uncertain whether additional clothing originally accompanied the burial.[6] A leather cord with an amber bead and bronze plate was around the neck.[2][6]
Scientific study
[edit]The body was initially identified as male. Later study of the associated clothing, particularly its similarity to garments from the Huldremose Woman and the Store Arden Woman, led researchers to conclude that the individual was female, although decomposition made osteological identification difficult.[6]
Because the body was largely decayed, further forensic analysis was hampered.[1][3] Later radiocarbon dating placed the age of the remains at about 400 BCE.[2][7][8]
References
[edit]
- 1 2 3 4 5 Andersen, S.; Geertinger, P. "Bog bodies investigated in the light of forensic medicine." Journal of Danish Archaeology. 3 (1984): 111–119.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Glob, P. (2004). The Bog People: Iron-Age Man Preserved. New York: New York Review of Books. p. 304. ISBN 1-59017-090-3.
- 1 2 Gill-Robinson, Heather (2005). The Iron Age Bog Bodies of the Archäologische Landesmuseum Schloss Gottorf. pp. 64–65.
- ↑ Lauber, Patricia G. (1985). Tales Mummies Tell. HarperCollins. p. 128. ISBN 0690043899.
- ↑ van der Sanden, Wijnand (1996). Through Nature to Eternity - The Bog Bodies of Northwest Europe. Amsterdam: Batavian Lion International. p. 137. ISBN 90-6707-418-7.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Munksgaard, Elisabeth (1984). "Bog Bodies – a Brief Survey of Interpretations". Journal of Danish Archaeology. 3: 120–123. doi:10.1080/0108464X.1984.10589917.
- ↑ Coles, B. & Coles, J., People of the wetlands. Bogs, bodies and lake-dwellers. Guild Publishing, London, 1989.
- ↑ Mannering, Ulla; Possnert, Göran; Heinemeier, Jan; Gleba, Margarita (2010). "Dating Danish textiles and skins from bog finds by means of 14C AMS". Journal of Archaeological Science. 37 (2): 261–268. doi:10.1016/j.jas.2009.09.033.