The Bog People

            
            
             On May 8th, 1950, two Danish men were cutting peat at Tollund Fen in Denmark when suddenly they saw a human face bulge from the peat. Horrified, they had first thought it to be the buried remains of a murder victim but it turned out to be something totally different and the local police called for archaeologist Peter Glob. The bog body became known as the Tollund man, he was lying naked except for a leather cap and belt, with his legs drawn up in the fetal position. When the peat around his neck was removed, archaeologists discovered the rope which he was hanged by about 2, 000 years ago. The Tollund man was not the only ancient body recovered from a bog. In fact, hundreds of men, women, and children have been discovered during peat-cutting activities decades or centuries ago in northwestern Europe - particularly in Denmark, the Netherlands, northern Germany, Ireland, and Great Britain. (http://tornadohills.com/strange/bog_people.htm). These people are known as "The Bog People." This term is used to label the preserved remains of the people (dating from the Metholistic period) who have been recovered from peat bogs. (VanMeter, 1998). This report will focus on the description of these mysterious people, their fate, scientific research that is performed on the bodies, famous bog discoveries, and future of the bog bodies. .
             WHAT IS A BOG?.
             A bog is a permanent wetland, and looks like a regular land. In fact, a bog is more like a spongy "floating carpet" of land. The reason for this is because underneath the surface the bog is full of water (90 - 95%). Bogs are mainly composed of water and peat (which are plants that have been decaying for thousands of years). In the past, people would go into the bogs to dig peat, which can be processed for industrial purposes such as heat and fuel. Following the introduction of machinery, more peat was cut - which meant more bogs were being destroyed.