Fact Sheet

The Mysterious Bog People

About the Exhibition

The Mysterious Bog People is the first international touring exhibition to showcase the wealth of precious objects deposited in the bogs of northwestern Europe over the course of 10,000 years, and to explore the reasons why these riches - and even human bodies - were placed in these perilous wetland environments. In fact, archaeologists believe that the reasons were spiritual in nature: that the objects were placed as offerings and the bodies as sacrifices, a gesture to the spirit world for wishes sought or gratitude expressed.

This string of beads was found near Exloo in the Netherlands in 1881. The ornament dates from the Bronze Age and consists of beads of tin, faience and amber. The clasp is copper. These materials came by trade to Exloo and were very valuable. Drents Museum.

This bog body is known as "Red Franz", and was found in 1900 in a bog near Neu Versen (Germany). Found lying on his back, the man lived sometime between A.D. 200 and 400. How Red Franz looked during his life can, for the moment, only be imagined. However, his facial reconstruction is currently underway and will be revealed for the first time in The Mysterious Bog People. Drents Museum.

The bogs of ancient times were mystical and dangerous places, covering vast expanses of northwestern Europe but inaccessible in daily life because of the treacherously soft ground. It was not until peat harvesting and land reclamation activities began a few hundred years ago that mysterious objects began to be discovered. These discoveries shed light on the everyday lives, ideas and spiritual beliefs of ancient peoples. Through more than 400 artifacts, supported by imaginative audio-visual presentations and interactive techniques, and situated in a dramatic setting blending theatre, light and sound, the exhibition aims to provide visitors with a meaningful experience of the motives behind these bog offerings and even to encourage visitors to reflect upon their own beliefs.

The artifacts selected for display tell the story of the people who lived near the bogs and their culture. They include bog mummies - and details on the reconstruction of individuals like the "Yde Girl" using modern forensic science - and a host of objects found in the bogs, such as flint and bronze axes, pottery, bronze swords, leather shoes, textiles, gold coins, jewellery, musical instruments and agricultural tools.

Young female bog body, dubbed "Yde Girl", from the Netherlands. The remains of this 16-year old child, who lived in the first century A.D., were discovered in a small bog in 1896, along with remnants of woollen clothing. The remains of the woollen cord with which she was strangled can still be seen around her neck. Drents Museum.

In 1993, professor Richard Neave of Manchester University made a facial reconstruction of Yde Girl. By means of CT-scans at the University Hospital of Groningen, a reconstruction of her skull was modelled into the appearance she would have had when alive. Drents Museum.

The exhibition also features one of the oldest artifacts from a European bog, the Pesse dugout canoe, which was found in 1955 and has been carbon dated between B.C. 8040 and 7510. It is the oldest known boat in the world and was made from a Scots pine with the use of flint axes. This remarkable object serves to explain what a bog environment is like and how it acts to preserve organic matter.

This dugout canoe made of pine measures almost three metres in length, and was found in 1955 during construction of a motorway in a small bog near the Drents village of Pesse (Netherlands). Radiocarbon-dated to 8500 B.C., this Mesolithic vessel is the oldest known in the world. Drents Museum.

For many centuries, peat was cut by hand. Very few bodies or other finds escaped the peat-cutters' notice in those days. Today, mechanical excavators are used to dig peat, and there is almost no chance of making archaeological finds. Drents Museum.

In prehistoric times, after the last Ice Age, peat began to form. In the ages that followed, vast areas were covered by bogs. People lived on the high, dry land between the bogs. Dangerous and often foggy places where one could easily get lost and drown, the bogs were shrouded in mystery. It is easy to understand why people believed they were inhabited by gods and spirits, who had control over life and death, health, crops, cattle and the fate of humans.

Good relations with these powerful beings were essential and could be maintained through offerings, which were deposited at the threshold of the dwelling place of the divine. Valuable items such as grain, antlers, pottery, wheels, weapons and jewellery were left in the bogs, turning them into immense reservoirs of gifts. Anything of value could be used as an offering. Even people were sacrificed to propitiate or thank the gods.

Ceramic jar with a style of decoration identified with the Funnelbeaker Culture (3400-2850 B.C.). Standing more than 17 cm high, this vessel was found in the spring of 1931 in a bog near the Drents village of Weerdinge (Netherlands). Drents Museum.

Disc-wheel with a diameter of almost 75 cm, carved from a single piece of wood. This oak wheel was found along with another in a small bog near Ubbena in the province of Drenthe (Netherlands). Dated at about 2700 B.C., it is one of the oldest known wheels in Europe. Drents Museum.

In early modern times, people began to exploit the bogs. As huge quantities of turf were cut for fuel, the gifts that had been buried for the gods were gradually uncovered.

The main theme of the exhibition is the practice of making offerings, through which prehistoric people tried to control their fate. Visitors will be astonished by the wide range of objects that were carefully laid down in the bogs.

The exhibition also reveals the botanical nature of bogs, which preserve objects that would decay under normal burial conditions. The history, biology and preservation properties of bogs are clearly demonstrated in the exhibition. The technique of reconstruction using modern forensic science is also examined. Scientists such as Richard Neave, an artist specializing in facial reconstruction, can recreate facial features from a skull that is very well preserved. Using clay and wax, the tissues and skin are modelled on a copy of the skull. Other facial features such as eyes and hair are also added, giving an impression of what the individual looked like.

Nederfrederiksmose Body - This body, discovered in 1898, is the first such body to have been photographed in situ, - that is, at the site it came to light. Drents Museum.

Peat moss (sphagnum) is able to store rainwater and make the bogs independent of groundwater. Bogs need a lot of precipitation (a minimum of 700 mm/year) in order to grow (approximately 1-10 mm/year). Drents Museum.

The exhibition also explores the scientific techniques and forensic analysis used to determine the age of the objects found in the bogs of northwestern Europe. The scientific component of the exhibition places it at the leading edge of international archaeological discovery about prehistoric Europe. Forensic research was recently conducted on another of the bog mummies of the Niedersächsisches Landesmuseum, dubbed "Red Franz," producing a lot of information about his life and death. Like other bog mummies, "Red Franz" was killed. This evidence supports the "offering" theory - that the bogs were indeed centres of spiritual activity and significance to early Northern Europeans.

The Mysterious Bog People is a unique exhibition. Never before have so many bog mummies and offerings been brought together, providing valuable insight into the practices of our ancestors.

Among the prehistoric persons that visitors will encounter are Red Franz, found in 1900 in Germany, and a 16-year-old girl from Yde, discovered three years earlier in the Netherlands.

Fans of Vincent Van Gogh also have a rare opportunity to see a painting that captures the often desolate atmosphere of the bogs.

• An illustrated book has been produced in four languages: English, French, Dutch and German. It is available for sale at the CMC Boutique.
• A variety of products are also on sale at the CMC Boutique: books and movies, jewellery, giftware, postcards and much more.