Ötzi the Iceman discovery was discovered in Italy, in the Alpine region near the border with Austria, where scientists have now revived ancient yeast from his remains to bake sourdough bread and potentially brew beer.
The yeast came from Ötzi the Iceman, a remarkably preserved prehistoric man found frozen in Alpine ice near the Italy–Austria border in 1991.
Since his discovery, Ötzi has remained a major focus of scientific research, offering valuable insight into the lives of early Europeans.
Recent studies of microorganisms preserved on and within Ötzi’s remains led researchers to an unexpected finding: viable yeast strains that could be revived and used in food production.
The team successfully applied the ancient yeast to make sourdough bread.
“Eventually, we obtained a completely normal dough that rose within 24 hours − basically just like with ordinary yeast. We made some really good dough with it,” microbiologist Mohamed Sarhan said in statements posted to the website of Eurac Research where he works for the Institute for Mummy Studies.
“I’ve never baked bread before and it showed. So the result definitely had room for improvement. But as I said, these were our very first experiments,” Sarhan added.
Encouraged by the results, the researchers are now considering expanding their experiments beyond bread, including potential beer production.
“We want to pursue this further and involve specialized research teams from the food sector in the process. Bread is currently one of the obvious applications we’re considering; another is beer – we’ve already discussed this with experts from [German brewer] Weihenstephan,” he said.
The yeast strains are believed to be cold-adapted organisms that likely entered Ötzi’s body shortly after his death rather than originating from within him. Genetic analysis supports the idea that they were introduced relatively early in the decomposition process.
Ötzi has long fascinated scientists and historians alike. His naturally mummified remains preserve the oldest known tattoos—61 in total and continue to fuel research into his life and mysterious death high in the Alps around 5,300 years ago.
Evidence suggests he may have been killed by an arrow shot into his back, making his case one of the oldest known cold-case murders.
