FOURIER-TRANSFORM RAMAN-SPECTROSCOPY OF 15TH-CENTURY MUMMIES FROM QILAKITSOQ, GREENLAND

To investigate molecular changes in mummified skin, near-infrared Rama n spectroscopy was applied to the skin obtained from four mummies foun d in Qilakitsoq in Greenland. The mummies date from AD 1475 (+/-50 yea rs) and are the oldest preserved bodies in the Arctic region. The spec tra of the skin obtained from the different mummies were very similar, but they were distinctly different from those of fresh and freeze-dri ed contemporary skin. Especially in the spectra of the ancient skin th e amide 1 (1630-1680 cm(-1)) and amide III (1220-1300 cm(-1)) bands ha d very low intensity, indicating loss of protein and/or changes in the secondary protein structure. Similar spectral changes have previously been found in the 5200-year-old skin of the Iceman. This may suggest that most changes in molecular structure take plate in a relatively sh ort time after mummification. (C) 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.