{{Short description|Bronze Age woman found in Denmark}} {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}} {{Infobox person | name = Skrydstrup Woman | image = Skrudstrupspigen.jpg | caption = The Skrydstrup Woman | birth_date = c. 14th–12th century BCE | birth_place = Southern Jutland, Denmark | death_date = c. 1382–1129 BCE | death_place = Skrydstrup, Denmark | known_for = Exceptionally preserved Early Nordic Bronze Age burial | occupation = Unknown (prehistoric individual) | height = {{convert|171|cm|ftin}} }}
The '''Skrydstrup Woman''' was unearthed from a [[tumulus]] in southern [[Jutland]] in Denmark in 1935. As of 2017 [[radiometric dating|carbon-14 dating]] showed that she had died between 1382 and 1129 BCE during the [[Nordic Bronze Age]];{{sfn|Frei|2017}} examination also revealed that she was around 18–19 years old at the time of death, and that she had been buried in the summertime.
==Identity and dating==
Osteologists identified the Skrydstrup Woman as a young woman who died in her late teens, around 18–19 years old. Her third molars had not yet erupted, and the proportions of her long bones match those of an adolescent who had reached her adult height.<ref name=":1" /> In life she stood about {{convert|171|cm|ftin}}, which is noticeably taller than most women of the Nordic Bronze Age.<ref name=":1" />
Radiocarbon dating places her death between 1382 and 1129 BCE, during the early part of the Nordic Bronze Age.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The woman from Skrydstrup |url=https://en.natmus.dk/historical-knowledge/denmark/prehistoric-period-until-1050-ad/the-bronze-age/men-and-woman-in-the-bronze-age/the-woman-from-skrydstrup/ |access-date=2026-02-25 |website=National Museum of Denmark |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1" />
==Life and background== [[File:DO-4889-Skrydstruppigens grav.jpg|thumb|Skrydstrup Woman, mummified remains in oak coffin, Denmark, c. 1300 BC<ref>{{cite web|title=The woman from Skrydstrup|url=https://en.natmus.dk/historical-knowledge/denmark/prehistoric-period-until-1050-ad/the-bronze-age/men-and-woman-in-the-bronze-age/the-woman-from-skrydstrup/|access-date=2 May 2022|archive-date=2 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220502025239/https://en.natmus.dk/historical-knowledge/denmark/prehistoric-period-until-1050-ad/the-bronze-age/men-and-woman-in-the-bronze-age/the-woman-from-skrydstrup/|url-status=live}}</ref>|261x261px]]
Archaeological work in the Skrydstrup area has helped place the Skrydstrup Woman within the local community of the early Nordic Bronze Age. A nearby farmstead, located about {{convert|700|m|ft}} northeast of the burial mound, dates to the same period as her interment and may have been her home.<ref name=":2">{{cite web |url=http://www.graenseforeningen.dk/leksikon/S/14172 |title=Skrydstrup-pigen |publisher=Graenseforeningen}}</ref>
Her clothing and ornaments offer further clues about her social background. The finely woven wool blouse, embroidered details, large square wool garment and horn comb reflect a level of craftsmanship associated with higher-status households.<ref name=":3">{{cite web |last=Kaul |first=Flemming |url=http://www.kulturarv.dk/1001fortaellinger/en_GB/skrydstrup |title=Skrydstrup, We know where she lived – 1001 Stories of Denmark |publisher=Kulturarv.dk |access-date=11 November 2013}}</ref> Her gold spiral earrings, made of high-purity metal, are rare finds in Nordic Bronze Age burials and indicate access to long-distance trade networks or elite craft specialists.<ref name="ScienceNordic" />
Recent isotope studies show that she grew up in the Skrydstrup region, suggesting a stable childhood in the local landscape.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Agricultural lime disturbs natural strontium isotope variations: Implications for provenance and migration studies |journal=Science Advances |volume=5 |issue=3 |article-number=eaav8083 |doi=10.1126/sciadv.aav8083 |pmid=30891501 |pmc=6415960 |author=Thomsen, Erik |author2=Andreasen, Rasmus |date=2019}}</ref> Her height and good dental health point to regular nutrition throughout her youth, which also supports the idea that she belonged to a prosperous household with reliable access to food and skilled textile production.<ref name=":1" />
Taken together, the archaeological, textile and scientific evidence suggest that the Skrydstrup Woman was raised in a well-established farming community and likely belonged to a family of considerable standing in Bronze Age southern Jutland.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Historisk Atlas |url=https://historiskatlas.dk/1001 |access-date=2026-02-28 |website=historiskatlas.dk |language=da}}</ref>
==Excavation of burial mound== [[File:Skrydstruppigens grav 2020.jpg|thumb|Skrydstrup Woman's burial mound]]
[[Museum Sønderjylland]]'s manager Christian M. Lund was responsible for the excavation of the burial mound. It was found {{convert|1|km|mi}} southwest of [[Vojens]]. The mound was on a bed of stone and covered with turf. It measured {{convert|13|meters|feet}} in diameter and {{convert|1.75|meters|feet}} high. Two men had been later placed in similar coffins at the edge of the burial mound. The mound was covered by a larger turf mound {{convert|24|meters|feet}} in diameter and {{convert|4|meters|feet}} high. The carbon 14 dating to around 1300 BCE is contemporaneous with a house plot on the Bronze Age farm in Skrydstrup {{convert|700|meters|feet}} northeast of the mound, which may have been her residence.<ref name=":2" />
==Appearance== [[File:Skrudstrupspigen2.jpg|thumb|Reconstruction of hairstyle]]
She was buried in a short-sleeved wool and linen blouse with embroidery on the sleeves and neckline. A large square cloth of wool, gathered at the top with a belt, covered her from the waist to the feet. Attached to the belt was an ornate horn comb. The clothes were made of wool from a dark, reddish-brown sheep. The only jewelry was her large circular spiral-wrapped earrings of 24-carat gold, which along with the blouse indicated she was of higher class.<ref name=":3" /> Her ash-blonde hair was about {{convert|60|cm|inches}} long and held in a complex hairstyle. Covering the hair was a fine hair net of unbraided horse hair made with the [[sprang]] technique, which was attached to an almost {{convert|5|meters|feet}} long woolen cord at the front and back. The string was wrapped several times around the head so that it sat like a headband and held the hairstyle and hairnet securely in place.
Professor Karin Frei from the [[National Museum of Denmark]] described her as an elegant, queen-like figure.<ref name="ScienceNordic">{{cite web|title=Another female Bronze Age icon is now known to have travelled across Europe|url=https://sciencenordic.com/archaeology-bronze-age-denmark/another-female-bronze-age-icon-is-now-known-to-have-travelled-across-europe/1444688|date=10 April 2017|author=Charlotte Price Persson|publisher=Science Nordic}}</ref>
==Condition and preservation==
The remains of the Skrydstrup Woman were unusually well preserved for an Early Nordic [[Bronze Age]] inhumation. She had been placed in an [[oak]] log coffin, a type of burial in which a trunk is split and the lower half is hollowed to form a chamber for the body. The oak created a low oxygen environment with natural tannins that slowed the decay of soft tissues and hair.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |title=Skrydstruppigen |url=http://natmus.dk/historisk-viden/danmark/oldtid-indtil-aar-1050/bronzealderen-1700-fkr-500-fkr/skrydstruppigen/ |publisher=Tanskan kansallismuseo |language=da |access-date=5 April 2018}}</ref>
When the coffin later collapsed under the weight of the burial mound, parts of the skeleton were crushed. This damage affected the skull, ribs, hand bones and several other elements, which deteriorated more rapidly than the better protected bones.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last1=Frei |first1=Karin Margarita |last2=Villa |first2=Chiara |last3=Jørkov |first3=Marie Louise |last4=Allentoft |first4=Morten E. |last5=Kaul |first5=Flemming |last6=Ethelberg |first6=Per |last7=Reiter |first7=Samantha S. |last8=Wilson |first8=Andrew S. |last9=Taube |first9=Michelle |last10=Olsen |first10=Jesper |last11=Lynnerup |first11=Niels |last12=Willerslev |first12=Eske |last13=Kristiansen |first13=Kristian |last14=Frei |first14=Robert |date=2017-06-05 |title=A matter of months: High precision migration chronology of a Bronze Age female |journal=PLOS ONE |language=en |volume=12 |issue=6 |article-number=e0178834 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0178834 |doi-access=free |issn=1932-6203 |pmc=5459461 |pmid=28582402 |bibcode=2017PLoSO..1278834F }}</ref> Despite this collapse damage, many bones survived well enough for [[Osteology|osteological]] study.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Frei |first1=K. M. |last2=Villa |first2=C. |last3=Jørkov |first3=M. L. |last4=Allentoft |first4=M. E. |last5=Kaul |first5=F. |last6=Ethelberg |first6=P. |last7=Reiter |first7=S. S. |last8=Wilson |first8=A. S. |last9=Taube |first9=M. |last10=Olsen |first10=J. |last11=Lynnerup |first11=N. |last12=Willerslev |first12=E. |last13=Kristiansen |first13=K. |last14=Frei |first14=R. |title=Supplementary material to PLoS One publication |journal=PLOS ONE |publisher=Frei, Karin Margarita and others |year=2017 |volume=12 |issue=6 |article-number=e0178834 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0178834 |doi-access=free |pmid=28582402 |pmc=5459461 |bibcode=2017PLoSO..1278834F |language=en}}</ref>
Fragments of soft tissue were preserved, including parts of the cheeks, eyebrows, eyelids and eyelashes.<ref name=":0" /> Her hair, which was about 60 centimetres long, survived intact. Its original pigment had faded due to long exposure to moisture, acidity and an anoxic burial environment, leaving mostly yellow to red tones which are the most stable under these burial conditions.<ref name=":1" />
The preservation of her teeth was exceptional. None of the teeth showed signs of caries, which suggests that her diet was low in refined carbohydrates and sugars.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Frei |first1=K. M. |last2=Villa |first2=C. |last3=Jørkov |first3=M. L. |last4=Allentoft |first4=M. E. |last5=Kaul |first5=F. |last6=Ethelberg |first6=P. |last7=Reiter |first7=S. S. |last8=Wilson |first8=A. S. |last9=Taube |first9=M. |last10=Olsen |first10=J. |last11=Lynnerup |first11=N. |last12=Willerslev |first12=E. |last13=Kristiansen |first13=K. |last14=Frei |first14=R. |title=Supplementary material to PLoS One publication |journal=PLOS ONE |publisher=Frei, Karin Margarita and others |year=2017 |volume=12 |issue=6 |article-number=e0178834 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0178834 |doi-access=free |pmid=28582402 |pmc=5459461 |bibcode=2017PLoSO..1278834F |language=en}}</ref> The survival of intact hair and teeth made it possible to carry out detailed isotope and trace element analyses that contributed to reconstructions of her health, diet and residential history.<ref name=":1" />
Organic materials associated with the burial also survived. The wool textiles used in her clothing were preserved well enough for identification, and the horsehair hairnet retained much of its structure. These finds provide evidence for Bronze Age textile production and social status.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Nationalmuseet |url=https://en.natmus.dk/historical-knowledge/denmark/prehistoric-period-until-1050-ad/the-bronze-age/men-and-woman-in-the-bronze-age/the-woman-from-skrydstrup/ |website=Nationalmuseet}}</ref>
==See also== *[[Borum Eshøj]] *[[Egtved Girl]] *[[Haraldskær Woman]] *[[List of unsolved deaths]] *[[Mummy]] *[[Tollund Man]]
==References== {{reflist}}
==Bibliography== *{{cite book|author1=Broholm, H.C.|author2=M Hald|date=1939|title=Skrydstrupfundet|place=København|publisher=Nordisk Forlag}} *{{cite book|author1=Broholm, H.C.|author2=M Hald|date=1940|title=Costumes of the Bronze Age in Denmark|place=Copenhagen and London}} *{{cite book|author1=Aner, E.|author2=K. Kersten|date=1984|title=Die Funde der älteren Bronzezeit des nordischen Kreises in Danemark, Schleswig-Holstein und Niedersachsen, Nordslesvig – Nord, Haderslev Amt.|volume=7|place=Neumünster|publisher=Wachholtz Verlag}} *{{cite book|author=Jensen, J.|date=1998|title=Manden i Kisten. Hvad bronzealderens gravhøje gemte|place=Gyldendal}} *{{cite book|author=Kaul, F.|date=1998|title=Ships on Bronzes: A Study in Bronze Age Religion and Iconography|volume=3|place=Copenhagen|publisher=National Museum of Denmark}} *{{cite book|author1=Ethelberg, P.|date=2000|title=Bronzealderen. In Det sønderjyske landbrugs historie. Sten- og Bronzealder|place=Haderslev|publisher=Historiske Samfund for Sønderjylland}} *{{cite book|author=Jensen, J.|date=2002|title=Bronzealder 2.000-500 f.Kr.|volume=2|place=København|publisher=Gylndendalske Boghandel}} *{{cite book|author=Kaul, F.|date=2004|title=Bronzealderens religion: studier af den nordsike bronzealders ikonografi|publisher=Det Kongelige Nordsike Oldskriftselskab}} *{{cite journal|author=Frei, Karin Margarita|display-authors=etal|date=2015|title=Tracing the dynamic life story of a Bronze Age Female|journal=Scientific Reports|volume=5|article-number=10431 |doi=10.1038/srep10431 |pmid=25994525 |pmc=4440039 |bibcode=2015NatSR...510431M |id=10431}} *{{cite journal|last=Frei|first=Karin Margarita|display-authors=etal|date=2017|title=A matter of months: High precision migration chronology of a Bronze Age female|journal=PLOS ONE|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0178834|volume=12|number=6|article-number=e0178834 |pmid=28582402 |pmc=5459461 |bibcode=2017PLoSO..1278834F |id=e0178834 |doi-access=free }} *{{cite journal|author=Knipper, Corina|display-authors=etal|date=2017|title=Female exogamy and gene pool diversification at the transition from the Final Neolithic to the Early Bronze Age in central Europe|journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences|volume=114 |issue=38 |pages=10083–10088 |doi=10.1073/pnas.1706355114 |pmid=28874531 |bibcode=2017PNAS..11410083K |doi-access=free |pmc=5617280 }} *{{cite journal|author1=Reiter, Samantha S.|author2=Frein, Karin M. Frei|date=2019|title=Interpreting Past Human Mobility Patterns: A Model|journal=European Journal of Archaeology|volume=22|number=4|pages=454–469|doi=10.1017/eaa.2019.35 |s2cid=198644355 }} *{{cite journal|author1=Thomsen, Erik|author2=Andreasen, Rasmus|date=2019|title=Agricultural lime disturbs natural strontium isotope variations: Implications for provenance and migration studies|volume=5|number=3|id=eaav808|doi=10.1126/sciadv.aav8083|journal=Science Advances|article-number=eaav8083 |pmid=30891501 |pmc=6415960 |bibcode=2019SciA....5.8083T }} *{{cite journal|author1=Frei, R.|author2=Frei, K. M.|author3=Jessen, S.|date=2020|title=Shallow retardation of the strontium isotope signal of agricultural liming - implications for isoscapes used in provenance studies|journal=Science of the Total Environment|volume=706|article-number=135710 |doi=10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.135710 |pmid=31787292 |bibcode=2020ScTEn.70635710F |s2cid=208535341 |id=135710|doi-access=free|hdl=109.1.5/0df5280e-5473-4ab1-b071-8708a9d7c61d|hdl-access=free}} *{{cite journal|author1=Frei, R.|author2=Frank, Anja B.|author3=Frei, Karin M.|date=2022|title=The proper choice of proxies for relevant strontium isotope baselines used for provenance and mobility studies in glaciated terranes – Important messages from Denmark|journal=Science of the Total Environment|volume=821|article-number=153394 |doi=10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.153394|pmid=35093367 |bibcode=2022ScTEn.82153394F |s2cid=246418942 |doi-access=free|hdl=109.1.5/fc6e2604-0ec3-43e6-baab-0f6554336095|hdl-access=free}} *{{cite journal|author=Price, T. Douglas|date=2021|title=Problems with strontium isotopic proveniencing in Denmark?|journal=Danish Journal of Archaeology|volume=10|pages=1–12|doi=10.7146/dja.v10i0.121659 |s2cid=240305680 |doi-access=free}}
{{Bog body}}
[[Category:14th-century BC women]] [[Category:1935 archaeological discoveries]] [[Category:Archaeological discoveries in Denmark]] [[Category:Archaeology of death]] [[Category:Deaths by person in Denmark]] [[Category:Germanic archaeological artifacts]] [[Category:Mummies]] [[Category:Nordic Bronze Age]] [[Category:Prehistoric objects in the National Museum of Denmark]] [[Category:Unsolved deaths]]