Tollund Man
Tollund Man | |
|---|---|
The Tollund Man's preserved head | |
| Born | c. 445–420 BC |
| Died | c. 405–384 BC (aged ~40) present-day Tollund, Denmark |
| Cause of death | Hanging (presumably ritual sacrifice) |
| Body discovered | May 8, 1950 Silkeborg, Denmark 56°9′52″N 9°23′34″E / 56.16444°N 9.39278°E |
| Height | 161 cm (5 ft 3 in) |
The Tollund Man (died 405–384 BC) is a naturally mummified corpse of a man who lived during the 5th century BC, during the period characterised in Scandinavia as the Pre-Roman Iron Age. He was found in 1950, preserved as a bog body near Silkeborg on the Jutland peninsula in Denmark. The man's physical features were so well preserved that he was mistaken for a recent murder victim. Twelve years before his discovery, another bog body, Elling Woman, was found in the same bog.
The cause of death has been determined to be by hanging. There is insufficient evidence to determine if the reason for the killing was a ritual sacrifice or a punitive execution.