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The Dätgen Man

The Dätgen Man is a bog body that was found in Schleswig-Holstein Germany in 1959 during peat cutting. The individual that this body belongs to dates back to the Iron age between the 2nd to 4th centuries CE. The body itself was found to be headless when discovered but 6 months later after the discovery a head was found in the same bog about 3m west of where the body, which (although not fully proven) has been interpreted to be apart of the same individual. Interestingly enough a bundle of clothes where found in the same bog in 1906 also dating around the same time and also being interpreted as belonging to the individual. The Dätgen man is currently on display at the Archäologisches Landesmuseum in Schleswig, Germany

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  Body of the Dätgen Man
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  The Hair of the Dätgen Man. At the time of death he wore his hair in a Suebian Knot, a hairstyle prevalent in the Germanic Suebi tribes. This means that the Dätgen Man could have very well been apart of one of the Suebi tribes.

Discovery

In September 1959 A decapitated corpse was found 50 cm below the peat surface in the Grossen moor, east of the village of Schülp-Notorf in Kreis Rensburg. Three wooden birch poles where found across the body, along with a fourth one being stuck into the peat bed between the thighs. when excavated the skin was initially light brown in color but darkened over the period of time that it was exposed to the air. Although he was found naked there where traces of wool fibers on his right ankle. The body consisted mainly of the legs, feet and vertebrae. It is also worth mentioning that his fingernails where also well rounded, meaning he was unlikely engaging in heavy manual labor. The head was discovered six months later in the same general area 3m away staked into the peat with 2 poles, The skull was severely compressed upon discovery.

Conservation

Like many other bog bodies, are well preserved due to the nature of the water itself. Usually environments with water are not great for preservation of archaeological remains, especially if said archaeological remains are organic. But the waters in bogs are highly acidic which prevents the decomposition process from occurring. It is worth noting that while organic materials like soft tissue may preserve well but other organic materials such as bone may degrade at a rapid pace in acidic environments like bogs. However, when there is drought or the bog is drained bog bodies present in the peat sediment will gradually start to be exposed to the air and the decomposition process begins. That is why the excavation process must begin soon after a bog is drained in order to keep the bog body in good condition. When excavated and transported to a facility to properly store it various chemicals are employed to keep the bog body preserved. In the case of the Dätgen Man, the chemical employed for the preservation process was pentachlorophenol, a highly poisonous chemical not only used for wood treatment but also preservation in the mid-20th century. The use of the chemical pentachlorophenol also made the skin of the Dätgen man very delicate, making it more difficult to analyze today as the chemical used didn't just change the color of the skin but also the texture (changing it from a more leathery texture to a softer texture prone to tear easily). as for the remaining bones those that where found at high risk of damage or loss where wired together with steel and copper wire (this includes the feet, ribs, and hand bones). As for the head, when it was found the skull had severely degraded to a few fragments, only the scalp and hair remained well preserved.

Scientific Analysis

The Dätgen Man was 30 years old at the time of death (based off the condition of the bones and joints) and was about 170 cm. Also through analysis the remains where determined to be male due to the shape of the pelvis. Some bones where found to be missing like the T4 and T5 vertebrae, this has been determined to be due to them being removed during the conservation process in the mid 20th century. Other bones where completely missing even during its initial discovery and analysis like the Cervical vertebrae. There where two stab wounds where found in the areas of the right hip and heart (the stab wound even being present on the heart itself). both of these stab wounds where peri-mortem. The bone fractures found throughout the remains of The Datgen Man where found to be mostly post mortem. it is also determined that his head and genitalia where both cut off post mortem. The Nails where more well kept and not worn down was also a detail found during examination pointing to the fact that this individual could have been of high status. Carbon-14 dating of the hair in 1960 revealed that the Datgen Man was from around the 2nd to 4th century CE. There is still a lot left unanswered due to how delicate The Datgen Man.

Interpretation and Comparison to Other Bog Bodies

A shared similarity The Dätgen Man had with other bog bodies found in northern Europe like the Tolland Man and the Old Croghan Man is that he was the subject of a violent death and perhaps apart of some sort of sacrifice or execution. He also shows similarities with the Old Croghan Man as they where both interpreted to be of high status. However what sets him apart from other bog bodies like The Tollund man or The Old Croghan Man was that a lot of the trauma found on the bog body was post mortem which may indicate that the cause of death could have very well been ritualistic in nature. As for why he was subjected to this is interpreted from some that this individual may have been guilty or accused of a crime like adultery (especially due to the indications of castration) or murder. However it is uncertain to what he was sacrificed for and why he was dismembered in such a gruesome manner.

See also

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mann_von_D%C3%A4tgen

List of bog bodies

https://www.britannica.com/list/9-noteworthy-bog-bodies-and-what-they-tell-us