A mummified Alpine marmot or
groundhog found at an altitude of 4,300 metres on Mt Rosa in
August is 6,600 years old, according to an initial analysis of
the mummy.
"The calibrated carbon dating has revealed that the exemplar
lived around 6,600 years ago, in the Neolithic Age," said the
report.
"The reliability of the result, equal to 95.4%, attests to the
eceptional nature of the find that puts the Lyskamm mummy's
lifetime between 4,691 and 4,501 BC".
The carbon dating was done in a US lab on a sample of the
marmot's rib.
The animal was found on the eastern wall of the Lyskamm Glacier
after the glacier shrank due to climate change.
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