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The Mummification Process
Scientists disagree about the details of the mummification process.
One theory is that Ötzi and his equipment were covered by a protective layer of snow that allowed air to penetrate for years. After many years, the glacial ice covered the mummy, bringing the mummification process – a form of freeze-drying in an airy, dry atmosphere – to a halt.
Another theory holds that the mummification process occurred at the surface in the meltwater, the corpse only later being covered by snow and ice.
However, if that were the case, the corpse would have been exposed to attacks by insects and predators, for which there is no evidence. Moreover, without a protective cover of snow the Iceman’s belongings would not have remained in the positions in which they were originally placed. The light birch-bark vessels in particular would have been blow away by the wind.
