Ötzi the Iceman and the Copper Age World

Over five thousand years ago in the Tyrolean Alps, a hunter was shot to death in a high mountain pass. His body would be covered by a glacier and preserved until its discovery in 1991. What can this unprecedented level of preservation tell us about not only Ötzi the Tyrolean Iceman but the Copper Age world that he came from?

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*Video Sources*

New insights into the Tyrolean Iceman’s origin - A. Keller et al (2011)
Land use in the eastern alps during the bronze age - A. Schmidl (2005)
Neolithic and Bronze Age Archery Equipment from Alpine Ice - Junkmanns et al (2019)
Mobility in the Mountains: Late Third and Second Millennia Alpine Societies’ Engagements with the High-Altitude Zones in the Southern French Alps - K. Walsh and F. Mocci (2011)
The Iceman’s Last Meal - Maixner et al (2018)
Prehistoric landscapes of the Dolomites - Visentin (2015)
Seventy-five mosses and liverworts found frozen with the late Neolithic Tyrolean Iceman - James Dickson (2019)
Therapeutic Tattoos and Ancient Mummies - Dario Piombino-Mascali and Lars Krutak (2020)
Metal Casting Equipment in the Bronze Age Burials in Europe - А. V. Batasova (2021)
The Iceman’s lithic toolkit: Raw material, technology, typology and use - Ursula Wierer et al (2018)
The Late Neolithic settlement of Latsch, Vinschgau, northern Italy: subsistence of a settlement contemporary with the Alpine Iceman, and located in his valley of origin - Daniela Festi et al (2011)
(... and many more research papers)

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*Video Chapters*

00:00 Ötzi the Iceman
03:26 Who was Ötzi?
04:03 Ötzi's Clothing
05:12 Ötzi's Gear
06:37 How old was Ötzi?
06:47 How big was Ötzi?
08:00 Ötzi's Diet
09:13 Ötzi's Medical Conditions
10:11 Ötzi's Tattoos
10:49 Ötzi's Health
13:04 What did Ötzi look like?
15:28 Was Ötzi a metalworker?
19:16 Was Ötzi a shepherd?
21:30 Was Ötzi vegetarian?
21:47 The Neolithic diet
23:30 Was Ötzi a hunter?
25:10 Was Ötzi a warrior?
26:46 Copper Age Europe
28:26 Where did Ötzi live?
29:45 What culture did Ötzi come from?
33:18 Ötzi's DNA
34:05 Copper use in Neolithic Europe
35:00 the Oldest Wheels in the World
35:45 Ötzi's relatives
36:42 Ötzi's last hours - what actually happened?

[DanDavisHistory]

Thanks for watching. If you enjoyed the video please hit "like" as it makes a big difference.

[snopure]

The killer probably retrieved his arrow simply because arrows were time consuming to make. If the arrow is still accessible after you've shot it, then it would be very practical to get at least the shaft back. In our eyes it would seem to be a rather cold-blooded action to do to a fellow human being, but hunters have done it to animals. Oetzi probably did that as well when he hunted, as the number of arrow shafts without heads in his possession could show.

[aff]

I love the comment of "in alternating dark and light patterns, presumably because it looked fashionable", it's so important to remember these were real people with thoughts and opinions and critical thinking, not just apes with tools

[JH-lout]

Ötzi is probably the most fascinating arheological discovery in our time. We are so fortunate that a time capsule like his remains appeared when science was able to make so much out of it.
Regarding his axe remaining by the corpse, it may be because he and his killer were part of the same community. The killer removed his own arrow, but left Ötzi's valuable posessions. If the killer had stolen anything, people in their community could recognize the items as belonging to Ötzi, and if the body was found, someone may recognize the arrow.
Sometimes the simplest explaination is the right one. Anytime archeologists use the methaphysical argument it sounds like they are out of ideas, although metsphysics no doubt played a large role in prehistoric times.

[KroM]

All this scientific data and researches gives us the flesh and bones of the events and characters, yet it takes a great story teller like you to blow life into it! Very nice narration. I also felt kind of emotional about the two broken arrow shafts with heads. I shoot traditional bows and make/repair my wooden arrows, and obviously they break often, and I find myself more often than not collecting the broken ends to repair them at home. And these cost 0.50c a piece nowadays. But back in the days, these stone arrowheads would have been of immense value, no wonder he'd carry back with him. It makes total sense. I imagine him at his campfire preparing the tar glue to remount those heads on spare shafts, or redo the fletching binds like I'm doing sometimes...

[robertgolden]

The stories this guy could tell. However his body and equipment are a priceless window into the past. R.I.P. Otzi and thank you for the history lessons.

[jackiereynolds]

Just imagine all of the different events that happened all around the whole world, - and all through each and every one - Otzi was always lying right there, in that very same spot; a silent witness always right there,
somebody who was actually personally present through more than five thousand years of world history.

[nickdarr]

That is a great point about how debilitating his medical issues really were. Things we would find horribly painful might be barely noticeable to a pre modern man who's had the issue for years. I'd hate to find out how many things are wrong with me after the best medical teams spend millions testing me

[emmm_mmm]

Even though I grew up in Germany and know a lot about it and have been following this topic for years, this has been super fascinating and so well told!

[joesullivan]

I've been obsessed with this story since it first Came out. I bet the world he lived in was beautiful in ways we will never understand. I wish we knew more. Like where's the guy that shot him? There's soooo much we don't know

[andersschmich]

Nice video! I remember hearing about Ötzi when I was a kid, and the popular depiction often made him out to be a primitive, 'caveman', not a member of a complex agricultural society that was already using metal. I'm finishing my Master's thesis on the Hill of Tara in Ireland, so I have been reading quite a bit about Europe from around this time.

[TmsTanim]

What I know about Ötzi at LEAST tripled from watching this video. Examining multiple possibilities and gauging their likelihood and how they've changed with the research tells a fascinating story -- even stressing the uncertainty of what's known about him paints him as more of a "person" than a "specimen". Really fires up the imagination and got me wondering how much of the sympathy I now feel for the guy is justified, or if he had it coming!

[mudgetheexpendable]

I admire & respect your clarity about what evidence shows, and how it changes interpretations over time with differing analyses applied to that evidence.

[Blackfox_Kitsune]

that was absolutely fascinating to watch. thank you dan davis you narrate history fantastically.

[tag]

Crazy to think that for all of recorded history Ötzi was just lying up on that mountain side with all the events we learn about transpiring in the world around him, oblivious to his presence and importance.

[tinge]

This was an excellent documentary, I loved it sooo much. Thanx!

[highroller]

What baffles me is this: If we assume Ötzi was on his own and running/hiding in Terrain that he knew perfectly well, than tracking him down is next level. I don't think any humans nowadays are that familiar with the environment, truly amazing.

[Cmdtheartist]

I could watch content about Ötzi all day. Endlessly fascinating. You did a great job with this. Thanks.

[buildorder]

An absolutely fascinating video, clearly spoken and without the unnecessary background music that spoils so much contributions. Thank you.

[apemancommeth]

Amazing…. His story and your way of producing it! This must’ve taken a long time to create! So many details and pathways to explore!