// Workers AI · dad joke modeWho did Borremose Woman date? A bog friend.
Borremose Woman | |
|---|---|
 Borremose Woman around the time of her discovery | |
| Died | c. 770 BCE Borremose, Himmerland, Denmark |
Body discovered | 1948, Borremose, Himmerland, Denmark |
| Known for | Iron Age bog body from Borremose, Denmark |
Borremose Woman, also known as Borremose III, is a bog body of an adult woman discovered in 1948 in the Borremose peat bog in Himmerland, Denmark. She was the third of three human bodies recovered from the bog between 1946 and 1948, and was found approximately 400 metres (1,300 ft) south of the location where Borremose Man had been discovered two years earlier.
Borremose Woman was approximately 20 to 35 years old when she died. Radiocarbon dating has placed her death at approximately 770 BCE. Her body was discovered lying face down and wrapped in a rectangular woollen twill textile. Although her skull and face were badly damaged when recovered, later examination determined that much of this damage had occurred after death. Her cause of death remains unknown.
Discovery
[edit]The individual now known as Borremose Woman, or Borremose III, was discovered during peat cutting in the summer of 1948 at Borremose, a peat bog near Aars in Himmerland, Denmark. She was found approximately 400 metres (1,300 ft) south of the location where Borremose Man had been discovered in 1946.[1]
Rather than removing Borremose Woman immediately from the bog, the excavators recovered her together with the surrounding peat. The block containing her remains was placed in a specially constructed box and transported to the National Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen, where it could be excavated and examined under controlled conditions.[2]
Condition
[edit]Borremose Woman was found lying face down, the body wrapped in a woollen garment.[2][1][3] The scalp and hair on one side of the head had been separated; however, this was believed to be damage caused by the shovels of the peat diggers, not a cause of her death.[3][2] The skull and face were crushed, and deterioration of the neck prevented the detection of strangulation.[2]
Clothing and associated items
[edit]Borremose Woman was wrapped in a rectangular twill textile made from wool, measuring approximately 180 by 120 centimetres (5.9 ft × 3.9 ft). The textile preserved all four original weaving borders, including both selvages and the starting and finishing edges. Fringes about 2 centimetres (0.79 in) long survived along each short end of the cloth.[1]
The cloth was folded across its short side, with the fringes facing downwards, before being wrapped around her body beneath the arms. Two groups of holes near the fold, together with the remains of a leather thong, allowed archaeologists to reconstruct how the garment had originally been fastened around the waist, which measured approximately 70–75 cm.[1]
Scientific study
[edit]In 1984, a forensic examination of Borremose Woman was undertaken by Andersen and Geertinger and Elisabeth Munksgaard of the Natural History Museum in Copenhagen. Their examination confirmed that damage to the scalp had not occurred before death. The scientists were unable to make any conclusion as to the cause of death whether by murder, suicide, accident or natural causes.[2]
Re-examination showed that the damage to the skull had happened after death and was caused by demineralization of the bones as well as pressure from the peat.[3][2] Carbon dating set the body's age to ca. 770 (+/-100) BCE.[4][2][1]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 Munksgaard, Elisabeth (1984). "Bog Bodies – a Brief Survey of Interpretations". Journal of Danish Archaeology. 3: 120–123. doi:10.1080/0108464X.1984.10589917.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Andersen, S.; Geertinger, P. "Bog bodies investigated in the light of forensic medicine." Journal of Danish Archaeology. 3 (1984): 111–119.
- 1 2 3 Gill-Robinson, Heather (2005). The Iron Age Bog Bodies of the Archäologische Landesmuseum Schloss Gottorf. pp. 64–65.
- ↑ "Human sacrifices". National Museum of Denmark. Retrieved 2021-06-15.