[Ophthalmopathologic findings in bog victims].

More than 1800 corpses found in European bogs have been described. Most were found in northwest Germany and Denmark. The 2700-year-old corpse of a young woman found in the Borremose fen in Denmark is described. The face was crushed, though injury during cutting of the peat was ruled out. Light and scanning electron microscopy revealed vessels both in the choroid of one eye and in one ear, with intravascular corpuscles--probably erythrocytes--but no extravascular hemorrhage. This means that the face was almost certainly crushed post mortem and during the winter. The cause of death is unknown. Very few of the other bog finds in Europe are well preserved, and even fewer have been pathologically studied or radiocarbon-dated. Interpretation of their fate is a very difficult, complex problem. One reason for this is that the corpses often remained buried for several thousand years, and they are often poorly preserved. The first descriptions of it were Roman, in particular Tacitus' Germania, which appeared in 98 AD--it is thus much younger than most of the corpses so far found. Tacitus talks of hanging, drowning, and ritual sacrifices. As regards future bog finds, it is suggested that an archaeologist, an anthropologist, a forensic expert and a taxi-dermist should be called in as soon as excavation begins. International cooperation between experts could prove very fruitful.