ABSTRACT
On September 19, 1991, two German mountain climbers, Erika and Helmut Simon, made a remarkable discovery in the lofty Dolomites between Italy and Austria. Glaciers are retreating because of hotter temperatures. Scientists at Innsbruck University examined and analyzed the remains, and made an astonishing report. Believed to be a hunter about forty-five years old, he carried a spear and a bronze ax, and wore boots with dried grass inside for warmth, fur leggings, bearskin booties, goatskin undergarments, and a grass-woven sleeveless cloak, open down the front. The Iceman’s ax shows that more than 5,000 years ago metalworking had already reached an impressive level of development. Oetzi becomes a kind of heroic metaphor for this book—the ancient Iceman who has suddenly become a postmodern pop icon.
