| Emmer-Erfscheidenveen Man Human Mummy | |
| |
| Biographical Information | |
|---|---|
| Name(s) | Unknown |
| Age | Unknown |
| Sex | Male |
| Status | Unknown |
| Height | Unknown |
| Source | |
| Culture | Bronze Age Europe |
| Date(s) | 14th-9th century BC |
| Site | Emmer-Erfscheidenveen |
| Current Location | |
| Location | Drents Museum, Assen |
| Catalog # | |
The Emmer-Erfscheidenveen Man consist of the oldest human remains with soft tissues ever found in the Netherlands. The remains were discovered in a bog near the hamlet of Emmer-Erfscheidenveen, Province of Drenthe, Netherlands, in October 22, 1938, and although the body was poorly preserved, and very little remained of it, the well preserved clothing – also the oldest found in that country – were a remarkable find.
Newspaper reports from the time of the discovery state that the son of the painter, H. Middeljans, found the specimen, which was "missing its head and feet, its bones had completely decayed," about 100 meters west of a place called Green Dijk. The young man took it home, but after it was shown to the police and discounted as a recent murder victim, the remains were thrown away on the side of the Middeljans property.
Excerpt of the "Provincial Drentsche and Asser Newspaper" talking about the mummy's discovery (1938)
A teacher and antiquarian of the region, H.T. Buiskool, heard about the find and took interest in the case, conducting an investigation in the peat where a few more sticks were found, as well as a kind of headgear that still had a feather in it. The remains were put in a paper box and taken to the ‘De Hondsrug’ antiquities room, where Buiskool was curator, and remained there until 1986 when the mummy was transferred to the Drents Museum in Assen.
Mummification[]
He was naturally mummified by the chemical reactions of a peat bog, but beside his garments, which included a sheepskin cap, deerskin shoes, calfskin cape, and pieces of woolen undergarments, and parts of what is thought to have been some sort of stretcher in which the corpse was transported, only small fragments of tissue and bone survived.
Studies[]
The remains include only 2 bones: a partial hyoid and a small bone from the foot or the hand. The remains are referred to as male because of the type of clothing found with him, the lack of material in the body itself made identification beyond generalities nearly impossible.
The woolen undergarments were crafted with a plain tabby weave, and decorated with embroidery along the hem.
Pollen analysis suggested that the body dated from the 14th-9th century BC, in the latter half of the Bronze Age.
Carbon dates taken from textile, hair, skin samples returned a result of 3110 +/- 50 BP (GrA-19531), 2995 +/- 45 BP and 3020 +/- 40 BP (GrA-19533), respectively.
Pathology[]
Speculation has it that the hyoid was broken at the time of his death, raising the hypothesis that the Emmer-Erfscheidenveen Man may have been murdered or executed by strangulation, though there is no other evidence to support this.
External Links[]
☀ James M Deem: Bourtangermoor Men, Bog Bodies from the Netherlands
☀ Geheugen van Drenthe: Man van Emmer-Erfscheidenveen
☀ Provinciale Drentsche en Asser courant: Emmer-Erfscheidenveen veenlijk
☀ https://www.researchgate.net/publication/30494918_Dating_bog_bodies_by_means_of_14C-AMS