ICEMANS MUMMIFICATION - IMPLICATIONS FROM INFRARED SPECTROSCOPICAL AND HISTOLOGICAL STUDIES

A skin sample from the Iceman (Otzi. Similaun Man. Man from Hauslabjoc h) was studied bq means of IR spectroscopy and histology, and the resu lts were compared to those obtained from nine other more recent human tissue samples with known case reports. Attenuated total reflection IR spectroscopy was used for studying the fate of proteins and lipids in these rare skin tissues. This technique provided a simple yet powerfu l means for semiquantitative determination of the main compound classe s found in skin samples, namely, triacylglycerols. their main breakdow n products (fatty acids), and proteins. When combined with histology, IR spectroscopy provided reliable information about the main condition s under which mummification of the samples had taken place. In the cas e of the 5300-year-old Iceman, preserved collagen contributed to the c onservation of morphological structures of the skin, although no cellu lar structures such as nuclei survived. In addition, post-mortal alter ations such as hydrolysis of triacylglycerols and phospholipids into f atty acids were unequivocally demonstrated. The solidified fatty acids provided a certain degree of preservation to the tissue characteristi c of adipocere. Based on this observation, taken together with the con comitant loss of epidermis, we suggest that Iceman's body was submerge d in water for a period of at least several months prior to desiccatio n. Results from other research disciplines support our conclusions.