Bog bodies, also known as bog people, are preserveded human bodies found in sphagnum bogs. Under certain conditions, the acidity of the water, the cold temperature and the lack of oxygen combine to tan the body's skin and preserve the skeleton. Bog bodies have been dated at more than 10,000 Britain, Ireland, northern Germany, the Netherlands and Denmark. Records of such finds go back as far as the 18th century. It is not readily apparent if a body has been buried in a bog for years, decades, or centuries. However, during the 20th century, forensic and medical technology was developed which allow researchers to more closely determine their age.
Unlike most ancient human remains, bog bodies have skin and internal organs as well as skeletons. Scientists have been able to study their skin, reconstruct their appearance and even determine what their last meal was by their stomach contents.
Many bog bodies show signs of being deliberately buried in the bog. Forensic examinations of some bog bodies suggest they were ritually slain and placed in the bog as part of the ritual, possibly as an execution for a crime or as a human sacrifice. See also: Celts and human sacrifice
Famous bog people
Grauballe Man, found 1952 in Nebelgård Mose, a bog in Jutland, Denmark.
The Mysterious BogPeople is the first international touring exhibition to showcase the wealth of precious objects deposited in the bogs of northwestern Europe over the course of 10,000 years, and to explore the reasons why these riches - and even human bodies - were placed in these perilous wetland environments.
The bogs of ancient times were mystical and dangerous places, covering vast expanses of northwestern Europe but inaccessible in daily life because of the treacherously soft ground.
The history, biology and preservation properties of bogs are clearly demonstrated in the exhibition.
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