Old Croghan Man

Old Croghan Man is believed to have lived during the Irish Iron Age. Radiocarbon analysis places his death between about 362 BC and 175 BC, making him more than 2,000 years old. and tall, His last meal (analysed from the contents in his stomach) was believed to have been wheat and buttermilk. However, he was shown to have had a meat-rich diet for at least the four months prior to his death. Scars on his lungs suggest he may have suffered from pleurisy. ==Death==

The man was buried at a bog (likely once a lake) at the foot of an ancient hill that was used for kingship ceremonies. A 2014 documentary suggested that he was a king or prince who was sacrificed by druids due to poor weather or harvests. These ancient tribes may have believed that this was caused by the failure of the king and he was responsible. He also has an injury to one arm, possible evidence that he tried to defend himself. A similar wound has been seen on the Cashel Man, who was found in 2011, also in Ireland. and killed and buried to ensure good yields of cereals and buttermilk. ==Discovery==

Old Croghan Man was discovered in June 2003 during commercial peat cutting in a raised bog near the base of Croghan Hill in County Offaly, in the Irish midlands. Peat cutters noticed the upper torso and arms in the freshly cut face of a drainage ditch, stopped work, and reported the find to the authorities. The discovery came only a few months after another Iron Age bog body, Clonycavan Man, was found by peat workers in a different bog in County Meath. Only the torso and upper limbs were present when the body was first seen. The head and lower body were missing. Later study showed that the man had already been cut at the neck and waist in the Iron Age, and that later drainage and peat cutting had disturbed the area again. In the wall of the drain, archaeologists found just a cluster of fingernails and a small piece of hazel branch used for tying or binding. Staff from the National Museum of Ireland oversaw the recovery and conservation of Old Croghan Man, and he later became one of the main objects in the museum’s exhibition Kingship and Sacrifice. Preservation Like many northern European bog bodies, Old Croghan Man was preserved by the cold, wet and acidic conditions in the peat. The bog was low in oxygen and rich in sphagnum moss, which creates an environment that slows or stops the bacteria that normally break down soft tissue. This allowed the skin, soft tissues and some internal organs to survive in good condition. According to Louise Mumford of the National Museum, the leather ring was made with two strands of leather joined through numerous small slits. The ring was initially removed from the body and wet cleaned to remove elements like peat from the leather. To prevent further decay of the waterlogged leather work and mould growth the arm-ring was stored in a 20% solution of glycerol and de-ionised water for two weeks in a process called consolidation. After drying and further chemical cleaning and treatment to prevent corrosion, the arm-ring was returned to the body for display. ==Related mythology==

Croghan Hill is known as Bri Eile in Irish myth. In "The Boyhood Deeds of Fionn", it is told "At that time there was a very beautiful maiden in Bri Ele, that is to say, in the fairy-knoll of Bri Ele, and the name of that maiden was Ele. The men of Ireland were at feud about that maiden. One man after another went to woo her. Every year on Samain the wooing used to take place; for the fairy-mounds of Ireland were always open about Samain; for on Samain nothing could ever be hidden in the fairy-mounds. To each man that went to woo her this used to happen: one of his people was slain. This was done to mark the occasion, nor was it ever found out who did it." ==See also==