Back in 1993, archaeologists excavating the Ukok plateau of the Altai came across the remains of a mummy. Interestingly, they found the mummy's shoulder coated with an intricate blue tattoo, exhibiting incredible preservation.
Siberian Ice Maiden
The tomb's contents were fixed inside ice. The mummy's discovery came as archaeologists carefully melted the firm structures.
The young woman's body was in an incredible state of preservation to the point where her skin tattoos were still visible.
Her body was accompanied by different horses that had a meticulous radial arrangement. This showed how significant her life and status were. There was also cannabis found in her tomb.
The woman's body was also embalmed carefully with bark and peat and laid in a sleep-like form. She wore a striped wool skirt and a silk blouse, which shows that she could have been a princess as the highest officials in nomadic tribes used silk clothing.
Animal-style and tribal tattoos remained preserved over skin. The tattoos displayed horned creatures that turned into floral depictions.
The media has referred to this unique mummy as the "Siberian Ice Maiden" or "Ukok Princess." She was part of the Pazyryk culture, which pointed to a people spanning various Scythian nomadic tribes. They used to live in the Altai mountains back in B.C. 600 to B.C. 300.
Several Pazyryk burials within the area experienced flooding. It is possible that this involved underground waters that ended up freezing. This may have led the organic remains to stay preserved to the point of being close to untouched by deterioration and decay.
The Siberian Ice Maiden is a well-known mummy discovered in 1993 in the Republic of Altai, Russia. She is believed to have been a Siberian belonging to the Pazyryk people, and her age at the time of death was estimated to be between 20 to 30 years old. The burial took place in a… pic.twitter.com/OJh0iLsrpC
— Historic Vids (@historyinmemes) July 26, 2023
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Ancient Mysteries
Interestingly, all the woman's internal organs were removed. Because of this, archaeologists were unable to find the cause or manner of her death.
However, twenty years later, the Russian Academy of Sciences theorized that she may have died due to breast cancer. According to her MRI scans, she may have gotten breast cancer during her early 20s. The asymmetry captured in the scans reveals that a tumor was present in her right breast.
The woman may have gone weaker due to the agony of the illness. She also exhibited signs of serious trauma not long before her death. Given this situation, she may have used cannabis to alleviate the pain, as evidenced by the marijuana findings in her tomb. It was not uncommon for the Eurasian nomadic civilizations's elite to use marijuana.
People who lived in the Altai area where the remains were found were angered by how her remains were globally showcased. The archaeologists from the area also prohibited further excavations and designated the area to be a zone of peace.
Eventually, her remains were brought back to the Altai museum. Nevertheless, Russian authorities still looked into it.
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