Glacier archeology

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The glacier archeology is a specialized field of archeology that deals with archaeological finds that in glaciers were included and were exposed during thawing of the ice.

Preservation of finds in the glacier ice

In the nutrient area of ​​a glacier, the firn turns into glacier ice and includes organic and inorganic objects such as the bodies of people and animals, plant remains, as well as equipment and waste from people. Due to the cold, the objects can be preserved well, organic material can even be preserved. As the ice slowly flows down into the valley, it also takes the objects with it and ultimately releases them again by melting.

In the consumption area, when the ice thaws, the objects are exposed. During the course of the year, the ice melt in the northern hemisphere usually reaches its highest level in September, so that at this time the probability of archaeological finds is very high.

Glacier corpses

Finds caused by the cold of preserved mummies , so-called glacier corpses , attract particular attention . As a result of the inclusion in the glacier ice, organic objects are mummified and can thus last for thousands of years. While such "frost preservation" often works very well in cold, dry and well-ventilated places (for example in permafrost , for example in so-called ice kurganen ), the conditions for preservation in a glacier are usually not very good, apart from the cold: Soft organic materials are usually quickly dissolved by the enormous forces inside a glacier. Even if this is not the case, they are usually released again relatively quickly (depending on the flow rate). It is assumed that this is usually the case after 100 to 200 years. Most glacier corpses therefore date from historical times. Another reason for this is the more frequent climbing of glaciers in recent times.

A prerequisite for the conservation of organic materials is a favorable location in the ice, for example on higher, flat firn fields, but generally in a relatively calm zone of the ice. In addition to the flowing ice, there are isolated depressions where ice remains stationary for a long time and which is now thawing due to global warming . The advantage of these stationary ice masses lies in the fact that the forces on the enclosed objects when a glacier flows are only small and the finds can therefore be very well preserved. On the Schnidejoch , a mountain pass between the Swiss cantons of Bern and Valais, finds from earlier passers-by from different periods were found. The famous glacier mummy “ Ötzi ”, on the other hand, was located in a roughly 40 m long, 2.5–3 m deep and 5–8 m wide rock hollow, over which a glacier moved for 5300 years without changing the underground ice .

If organic substances break out, they usually disintegrate relatively quickly. In any case, it is important that such finds are recovered as quickly and professionally as possible.

It is believed that glacier corpses were found long before they were scientifically explored. An indication of this are numerous folk tales : Similar to moors , glaciers are described here as the abode of “ poor souls ” exiled there who cannot find eternal rest here (see, for example, Grossglockner ).

Dealing with glacier corpses and similar finds

As the accelerated melting of glaciers means that more and more modern glacier corpses (e.g. missing mountaineers ) are found that have to be identified by forensic doctors, the following rules apply to such finds:

  • Avoid touching finds if possible
  • Photographing finds
  • Mark the place where it was found , for example with a cairn , and note the coordinates
  • Report finds to the police
  • If there is a risk that the place of discovery cannot be found again (for example snowfall, or the finds threaten to slip into an inaccessible place), the finds should be taken and handed in to the nearest police station

More finds

Even the less spectacular finds of objects are mostly relatively young mountaineering equipment. Here, too, the flow of the glacier is one reason, the lower human presence before the age of mountaineering is another. The erosion forces of the glacier, however, have less of an effect on such finds, and they remain longer even after they have been eroded. Metal objects in particular, but also wooden objects, are often in a good state of preservation. For example, Neolithic bows and crossbow bolts were found on the Lötschberg in Switzerland in 1944, as well as some Bronze Age finds since 2011, while the Theodul Glacier (Switzerland) released human remains, including weapons and coins from the 16th century, in 1985.

The oldest archaeological finds in the Alps are the legacies of mesolithic hunter-fisher-gatherers who mined rock crystal 8000 to 10,000 years ago near Fuorcla da Strem Sut (DE: Stremlücke) to make tools.

More recent archaeological finds are fighter pilots from the Second World War . The machines have been dragged out by the ice over the decades. In addition to clothing, the equipment of the crew also includes memorabilia and everyday objects as well as written documents. Aircraft crashes in a glacier area can be proven and reliably interpreted using documents and logs. The plane crash on the Gauli Glacier and the two Air India crashes on the Bossons Glacier are fairly well-known in this context .

See also

literature

  • Matthias Schulz: Hoping for Hannibal . In: Der Spiegel . No. 37 , 2003 ( online ).

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Werner Meyer: The mercenary from the Theodul pass and other glacier finds from Switzerland . In: Frank Höpfel , Werner Platzer , Konrad Spindler (eds.): The man in the ice - report on the international symposium in Innsbruck 1992 . 2nd Edition. tape 1 . Self-published by the University of Innsbruck , Innsbruck 1992, ISBN 3-901249-01-X . , Pp. 321-333
  2. ↑ M. Grosjean, PJ Suter, M. Trachsel and H. Wanner: Ice-borne prehistoric finds in the Swiss Alps reflect Holocene glacier fluctuations ( Memento of the original from January 30, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 284 kB) @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.giub.unibe.ch
  3. ^ Regula Gubler: Bernese Alps, archeology on the Schnidejoch. (PDF) In: Bernese Alps, Archeology on the Schnidejoch. Archaeological Service of the Canton of BernService archéologique du canton de BerneService des bâtiments, monuments et archéologie du canton du ValaisService for Building Construction, Monument Preservation and Archeology of the Canton of Valais, June 1, 2019, accessed on July 11, 2019 .
  4. ↑ South Tyrol Museum of Archeology: The site
  5. ^ Southeastern Switzerland : After more than 50 years: body of a missing person identified
  6. ^ Regula Gubler: Bernese Alps, Archeology on the Lötschenpass. (PDF) Archaeological Service of the Canton of BernService archéologique du canton de BerneService des bâtiments, monuments et archeologie du canton du ValaisDepartment for Building Construction, Monument Preservation and Archeology of the Canton of Valais, June 1, 2019, accessed on July 11, 2019 .
  7. ↑ Sophie Providoli, Patrick Elsig, Philippe Curdy: 400 years in glacial ice. The Theodulpass near Zermatt and its «mercenaries». In: Series of the Valais History Museum . tape 13 . Sion 2015.
  8. ↑ Marcel Cornelissen: 8000 years of rock crystal mining between Uri and Graubünden. In: M. Cimelli (Ed.): SAGW-Bulletin. Dossier glacier archeology . tape 2 . SAGW, Bern May 1, 2019, p. 41 ( sagw.ch [PDF]).
  9. ↑ Thomas Reitmaier et al .: Late Mesolithic rock crystal mining at an altitude of 2800 m near the Fuorcla da Strem Sut (Kt. Uri / Graubünden / CH) . In: Archaeological correspondence sheet . tape 46 , no. 2 , 2016, p. 133-148 .