History's Greatest Mystery

“Congratulations”, we told them, “In your time as crime scene investigators we know you have been involved in many cases. None quite the claim to fame you had hoped, but this might just be your chance. You have before you all the evidence that has been found surrounding this individual’s death and it is up to you to solve his murder.”

Well, I thought it was exciting. As I glanced around the room at the blank stares and slightly arched eyebrows, I could tell these young adolescent new recruits were yet to find their love of learning, but hopefully once they had a crack at it a good old fashion true crime tale and forensic investigation would do the trick.

As these Year 7 kiddies sifted through the images, the slips of information, and mock physical evidence like items of clothing, I could see a few smirks break through the cracks accompanied by a giggle or two. Okay, they’re enjoying themselves. That should make this a lot easier. And what’s not to like? This is exciting stuff.

It was far across the ancient alps the mighty iceman trekked during his final 33 hours amongst the living. The tenuous ground of a rugged glacial pass, crunched beneath his feet as this endless expanse set the scene for the last journey he would ever take. Did Otzi know on that final day, as he braved the thin mountain air and the unforgiving desolate stretch of uneven terrain, that a cramped rock gully upon the Otzal Alps would become his tomb? Could he have possibly imagined the impact his life and death would have upon generations to come? Or the knowledge he would bring to the world?

Civilisations rose and fell as his body lay in wake, keeping hidden the dark secrets of his untimely demise for more than 5,000 years. As the glacial walls began to melt along the border of Italy and Austria, two unsuspecting tourists stumbled across Otzi’s mummified remains on the 19th of September, 1991, 5,300 years after his death. These remains were incredibly well preserved, with almost no signs of decomposition on the body. They were an archaeological marvel and treated as such, which made getting to the bottom of any mysteries that much more difficult. No one wanted to risk damaging the body.

For more than a week the world’s best scientists believed he simply fell victim to a vicious Alpine storm. After all, the icy mountain air had frozen him so quickly. Those entrusted with his body never suspected foul play, but still some experts questioned how one so well attuned to nature, having survived so long already at the ripe old age of 45, could have possibly made such a fatal mistake. It wasn’t until a Bolzano radiologist named Dr Paul Gostner became intrigued by a small white fleck on one of Otzi’s x-rays and used a CT scan to investigate further that the sinister nature of Otzi’s death was brought to light. The item that had become lodged within his shoulder blade was unmistakable, a stone arrow had pierced his back. Otzi had been shot through the subclavian artery, bleeding to death almost instantly, and for the first time since Otzi’s discovery scholars turned their eyes to murder. As if the knowledge that ancient Alpine cultures were over 3,000 years more advanced than historians had ever known with the unexpected discovery of a copper axe on his person wasn’t enough, this case just got a whole lot more interesting.

Learning more of Otzi’s case was a risk, but one that scholars were willing to take. With some effective campaigning a restricted defrosting investigation was allowed, led by a prestigious biological anthropologist named Albert Zink and forensic pathologist Dr Egarter Vigl. These scientists and their team discovered all they could in the nine hours they were given to carefully study Otzi’s remains. The pressure to pry every piece of information they could from this corpse was in constant conflict with the insurmountable responsibility to protect one of the most prized pieces of historical evidence of all time.

Together many of the great minds of the age found countless clues to Otzi’s life on that final day and, of course, to the cause of his death. Though even with all that they found there is still so much scrutiny around what really happened.

So, mystery lovers, which of you can solve the murder of Otzi the Iceman?

Here’s what we know:

*Otzi’s body was found in the middle of the wilderness, slumped over a rock, and squeezed between a rock and ice.

*Judging by the contents of his stomach, he appeared to have been a well fed individual.

*At the time of his death, Otzi was carrying a number of partially made arrows and a copper axe.

*Stone carvings nearby portrayed the same kind of axe.

*Otzi sustained a number of injuries in the days leading up to his death, some of which were defensive wounds. One of these was a deep cut across his right hand.

*He also had a number of broken bones (none of which were fatal).

*Otzi suffered blunt force trauma to the head.

*An arrowhead had penetrated Otzi’s subclavian artery.

Otzi the Iceman’s death is one of the oldest murder mysteries in the world, with his death dating back to 800 years before the Great Pyramid had been constructed, and it remains unsolved to this day. What other historical wonders still lie hidden away, waiting on some unsuspecting wandered to stumble upon their secrets?