Unexplained Mysteries: Otzi the Iceman

Ötzi the Iceman was found in the Schnalstal glacier in the Ötztal Alps in 1991 by two German Tourists. Ötzi the Iceman was said to be preserved in ice, in the Alps for 5,300 years!. The body of Ötzi the Iceman was very well preserved, this was because it was mostly covered with ice.

This is a big mystery on it's own, finding a body thousands of years old, which after deep scientific analysis showed many signs that Ötzi the Iceman was actually murdered. Ötzi the Iceman had cuts to his hands, wrists and chest. He also had an arrow head lodged in his shoulder and signs of a big blow to the head. So he was killed, but for what? Well, some experts believe he was killed in a ritual sacrifice.

But there is a more stranger mystery surrounding Ötzi the Iceman in my opinion. This is the theory that Ötzi the Iceman was cursed. Seven of the main people involved with the discovery of Ötzi the Iceman died under strange incidents. Four of the seven died from bad accidents.

Here is the list of all the people who have died, allegedly from the Ötzi the Iceman curse.

1. Dr. Rainer Henn, Aged 64: Dr. Henn was a forensic pathologist, and was the first to die allegedly from the Ötzi the Iceman curse. Dr. Henn was said to have held the cadaver (The dead body), wearing no gloves or protection in order to place it in a body bag. He died in a car crash, after a front end smash with another car on his way to a conference where he was going to suggest new ways and methods to study Ötzi the Iceman.

2. Kurt Fritz: Not long after Dr. Henn died, this was the second alleged victim of the curse. This guy was an expert rock and mountain climber, who guided the team to the discovery of Ötzi the Iceman. He was the only person hit by falling rocks when a freak avalanche took place in an area that he was well known to visit, so he knew it well.

3. Rainer Hoelzl, Aged 47: An Austrian press reporter that filmed the real footage of Ötzi the Icemans removal out of the ice, where he had lay for thousands of years undiscovered. This footage was shown world wide. Not long after this he started to suffer from a strange illness, allegedly a brain tumor. Rainer Hoelzl died of this illness not long after and was said to of been in extreme agony.

4. Helmut Simon, Aged 67: Helmut was a German tourist. This man, who was with his wife at the time, were the people that actually found Ötzi the Iceman in 1991. Helmut was back in the area where he found the iceman for a hike in 2004, he went on this hike alone, and when he did not come back when he said he would people became concerned. A search team went out to search  for Helmut, they became aware that a freak change of weather, from dry to blizzard snow had been responsible Helmut to fall down a very deep ravine. After just over a week Helmuts body was found, cased in snow, very similar to how Ötzi the Iceman was found.

5. Dieter Warnecke, Aged 45: Dieter was in charge of the search team that searched for, and found Helmut. Dieter died of a heart attack, but his family said he was a very healthy man with no medical conditions. The strange thing about this death is that it happened not even an hour after Helmut was buried. Maybe the curse wanted Helmut not to be found and stay buried in ice for thousands of years just like Ötzi the Iceman ..

6. Konrad Spindler, Aged 66: Konrad was the main man, the most knowledgable on studys into Ötzi the iceman. Konrad did have a chronic illness amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. In 2005 this condition became much worse and in the end he died because of it. While he was alive he was asked about the curse and he noted as beleiving it was a load of speculation, not true at all. This is what Konrad actually said, and I quote: “I think it’s a load of rubbish. It is all a media hype. The next thing you will be saying I will be next.”

7. Dr. Tom Loy, Aged 63: Died just before finishing the book he wrote about Ötzi the iceman. He was known to have spent long periods of time near the iceman, maybe even handling the body, or items found with it. Tom's death was a shock to many friends and family, but it was alleged he had some sort of on-going medical illness, which may have been the cause of his death.

It should be noted, there were, and still are today, many people that work with the Iceman.  People that were involved with removing the body, analysing the body and artifacts found with it. So could this just be a coincidence. Obviously, it's not surprising that some people (seven out of hundreds) would have died, it's human nature. But from what you have read above regarding the deaths of these seven men, you have to decide wether there really was a 'curse' or not. Personally I think there probably was something strange about the way these men died. To know for sure or not still remains a mystery. Send a comment or possible explanation.