The mummy pulled from a melting glacier in the Alps in 1991 called Iceman (or Otzi, or Similaun Man, or Hauslabjoch Man, or even Frozen Fritz) has been intensively studied since then--and no wonder. How many times does a 5,300 year old man walk into your office, plump down in the chair and explain his life to you?

A recent paper in the journal Vegetation History and Archaeobotany describes the implication of four mosses found inside Otzi's intestines. Together, the mosses illuminate the man's wanderings, and bring us yet more insight into his last days.

Archaeologists now know that Otzi was a late Neolithic/Chalcolithic herder who was born and lived his life near where he died. He was about 45, stood about 5'2" tall and weighed about 135 lbs. He was stocky and had strong legs--probably from a life led tramping regularly up and down from the mountains and valleys of the Tyrolean Alps, if not every day. For more on what we understand about the Iceman, see the Iceman glossary entry.

Four important mosses found in Otzi's intestines illustrate his last few days of life. Mosses are not food. They're not tasty, they're not nutritious. So what were they doing there?

Neckera complanata and Anomodon viticulosus
These two species of moss are found on lime-rich, shady rocks in woodlands, growing close to and south of where Otzi was found, but not north. The presence of them inside Otzi probably came from their use as food-wrapping and suggests that Otzi wrapped his last meal south of where he died.

Hymenostylium recurvirostrum
This species of moss is known to hang about on marble. The only outcrop of marble in the vicinity of Otzi's body is on the Pfelderer Tal, suggesting that at least on of his last journeys, Otzi climbed into the Alps westwards up the Pfelderer Tal.

Sphagnum imbricatum Hornsch

Sphagnum moss doesn't grow in the South Tyrol where Otzi died. It's a bogmoss, and the only likely location within walking distance of where he died, is the broad, low-lying valley of Vinschgau, where Otzi resided for his adult life. Sphagnum moss has a specific ethnographic use as dressings for wounds, because it is soft and absorbent. Otzi's hand was deeply cut three-eight days before he died, and researchers think it's possible that this moss was used to staunch his wound, and was transferred to his food from the dressings on his hand.

So, from 17 years of research, we know where and when Otzi was born, where he lived, what he likely did for a living, what he spent his last days doing, and what killed him. What we don't know, and probably never will, is why after spending his life peacefully herding sheep and goats in the Tyrolean Alps, he was chased, beaten, shot with arrows and left to die on a mountain top.

• Iceman: The Glossary Entry, with a fairly extensive bibliography
• Dickson, James H., et al. 2009 Six mosses from the Tyrolean Iceman’s alimentary tract and their significance for his ethnobotany and the events of his last days. Vegetation History and Archaeobotany 18(1):13-22.

New video this week from The Archaeology Channel covers the Global Heritage Fund's efforts to save cultural aspects of Kars in the central Caucasus:

Saving Turkey’s Treasures: Eastern Anatolia, Turkey

For The Fires of Vesuvius, historian Mary Beard assembled her unique take on 250 years of archaeological and historical excavation and exploration. I gotta say that I found Fires a most inspiring book.

So far, Beard's text has inspired me to put together two walking tours of Pompeii, one of the House of the Faun and one of the city streets. I'll probably make at least two more---every time I open the book, it leads me in another interesting direction. The inspiration comes from the text alone--the version I read was uncorrected page proofs and didn't have the 23 color plates that you, o lucky reader, will get a look at.

Anyway, take a look at my review, and you may find yourself putting it on your own holiday wish list.

• The Fires of Pompeii: A book review
• Compare prices for The Fires of Pompeii at PriceGrabber
• Read the book blurb at Harvard University Press
• The Streets of Pompeii walking tour
• Walking Tour of the House of the Faun
• Pompeii: Buried in Ages

Got some great news about a couple of free downloadable books on monk seals in archaeology, which I am pleased to pass along to you, because I'm secretly into pinnipeds in a big way.

Hawaiian Monk Seal. Photo by Brian Omura

William M. Johnson and David M. Lavigne. 1999. Monk seals in antiquity. The Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) in ancient history and literature. Mededelingen 35. The Netherlands Commission for International Nature Protection, Leiden: 1-101., 17 figs.

William M. Johnson. 2004. Monk seals in post-classical history. The role of the Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) in European history and culture, from the fall of Rome to the 20th century. Mededelingen 39. The Netherlands Commission for International Nature Protection, Leiden: 1-91, 31 figs.

For more on why pinnipeds are so interesting to archaeologists, read Pinnipeds in Archaeology.