This is my cousin Ötzi. He's not looking so good having spent way too much time being freeze dried.A couple of years ago I had my Mitochondrial DNA sequenced by Oxford Ancestors Ltd. and I found out that Ötzi and I share a maternal ancestor from about 7000 years ago.
Ötzi died high on an Alpine pass between Austria and Italy over 5000 years ago. This means at the time he was alive Egyptian civilization was just beginning. His body was covered by ice and it was not found again until 1991.
Apparently my cousin was either murdered or sacrificed. If I ever find all the descendants of those responsible for his death, there will be trouble. Just sayin'.
Read more about Ötzi at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%96tzi_the_Iceman
http://www.oetzi.com/
Find out about your ancestry at:
http://www.oxfordancestors.com/
My uninformed take is Otzi died after being ambushed or attacked. Murder implies laws and and a state structure. Otzi looks more like he fled from a battle and died of the arrow wound afterward. I wouldn't quite class death from a battle wound as murder. Feuds and raiding were probably endemic in Otzi's day. Still, to be related to the Iceman is cool.
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