The oldest Wildcamper in human history

oldtech

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The first Wildcamper in human history.

Hmm ... I thought that might have got your attention ! ... :lol-053:

Sometime ago ( 10 years ... 15 years ??? ) they found a ten thousand year old
human body that had been extremely well preserved in an Alpine glacier.
I think they may even have given him a name , but I can't remember what it was.

All very interesting , I'm sure , but what got my attention was the satchel that they
found next to the body.

It was the contents of the satchel that gave me the idea for this thread , and as a result ,
I think the guy had a legitimate claim to being "The first Wildcamper in human history"

... OK , I agree , that's a rash claim , but at least it's well documented..... :idea-007:
So , who can answer the following question ( members of the "Eggheads " quiz team excluded )

" What did they find in the satchel ? "

And no , it wasn't an iPhone , a Wi-Fi dongle, a tablet computer or a " pack-of-three" .

A prize may be available for the first complete , correct answer .

Happy Head-scratching ...

Oldtech
 
i know he had a bow 'n'arrers and a knife and axe,and a firestarter kit and some sort of sleeping bag
 
This was "The Ice Man" or Ötzi.

He had a belt pouch which contained the following:
Flint "edge scraper"
Flint drill
Thin broken flint blade
Bone awl
Firelighter fungus (Fomes fomentarius), which together with minute traces of pyrites, showed that he used a flint and pyrites to strike a spark, but none of the flints present had been put to such use.

He also had 2 birch containers one with evidence of charcoal inside, which may have meant it was used to carry live embers. The other container had been stepped on and crushed after the body was discovered.

Also identified with the body was the remains of a back pannier made from larch and hazel.

There were a lot of other artefacts found:
A bow stave
A quiver with 5 arrows
An axe
Ibex bones
A dagger and scabbard
A retoucheur - which consisted of a piece of antler inserted into the centre of a piece of lime wood. This was used to do the final work on a knapped flint.
2 Birch fungi mounted on fir strips.
A tassel with stone bead
A sloe berry
A net


My information is probably 10 years out of date and I daresay new discoveries have been made since then.
 
Martin P said:
I wonder what he used the tassel with the stone bead for
Click to expand...

Decoration maybe!!

He also had tatoos which are in the place that acupuncturists use today for low back pain - and on xray he had arthritus in his lower spine!!
 
Martin P said:
I wonder what he used the tassel with the stone bead for
Click to expand...

Sadly we can't ask him!!!

It was the only item with him that could be described as decoration, but that's just speculative. Unlike some archaeologists, I prefer NOT to try and guess at the use of objects without good evidence.
 
Ok but as i understand the bow stave was unfinished its a fair bet he was using the flint scraper to shape it
 
Somelier said:
Sadly we can't ask him!!!

I prefer NOT to try and guess at the use of objects without good evidence.
Click to expand...

GUESS ??? ..... How many different explanations can you come up with for a bloke
wandering around with everything he needed to forge Luncheon Vouchers ?
 
The bow is unlike any other bow discovered from that period, and because of its unique shape it was suggested that it was unfinished. Examination by electron microscope showed no signs of the sort of wear that would result from the bow string being fitted and used. It seems likely that he was still working on it - it was 182 cm long - and just as likely that the flint tools he had with him would have been employed in the task.
 
oldtech said:
GUESS ??? ..... How many different explanations can you come up with for a bloke
wandering around with everything he needed to forge Luncheon Vouchers ?
Click to expand...

Um, have you read the post properly? We were talking about a bead on a tassel and to what use it was put!!!!

How many uses can you come up with?
 
A bow made from yew
Its quite staggering how long lived that invention remained as one of the finest weapons available
 
Hi Sommelier

"Um, have you read the post properly? We were talking about a bead on a tassel and to what use it was put!!!!

How many uses can you come up with? "


..... 42

.... and you can't use "a bead on a tassle " to forge anything ! -:)
 
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Martin P said:
A bow made from yew
Its quite staggering how long lived that invention remained as one of the finest weapons available
Click to expand...

Apparently, so much yew was exported from the Tyrol to England in the 16th & 17th centuries that yew became rare in that area and is now a protected species.
 
just been given some yew to work with and I'm plotting to put some aside for a bow, its beautiful stuff , takes a lovely finish
 
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