Forensic Palynological Analysis of Intestinal Contents of a Korean Mummy

Abstract

Experimental studies show that pollen resides in the intestinal tract for a minimum of seven days to at least 21 days. Because of this long residence time, pollen analysis is an important avenue of forensic research. Pollen provides evidence of the environment of the decedent as well as foods and medicine. We analyzed a coprolite recovered from a Korean mummy. The decedent was a high-ranking general who lived during the 16th or17th centuries. Twenty pollen types were recovered. These ranged from 100s to 10,000s of pollen grains per gram of coprolite. Importantly, comparison of the coprolite pollen spectrum to modern aeropalynology studies of Korea suggests that the general died in winter between middle November to late February. Economic pollen types were most abundant. Economic refers to dietary, medicinal, spice, and beverage types. Dietary pollen types include pollen from Oryza (rice), Eriogonum (buckwheat), Brassicaceae (mustard family), and Solanaceae (tomato-chile pepper family). Pollen consistent with dandelion is present and may represent its use as food. Tens of thousands of grains from water plants, bur-reed or cattail, dominate the pollen spectrum. We believe that this was introduced with water. The large numbers of water-related pollen suggest that the general consumed broth, tea, or soup for a considerable time before death.

Mummification in Korea and China: Mawangdui, Song, Ming and Joseon Dynasty Mummies

“…Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms were analyzed to identify ABCC11, EDAR, FGFR2, and ABO genotypes [ 36 ]. In addition, various studies such as palynological analysis [ 37 ] or forensic craniofacial reconstructions [ 38 ] were successfully performed.…”

Chemical Property Changes and Thermal Analysis during the Carbonizing Process of the Pollen Grains of Typha

“…The pollen grains classification of Typha was based on the morphological characters of configuration of the surface of pollen such as the hole in the germinal aperture and the width of the reticulate ornamentation [16,17]. Moreover, the pollen of Typha is classified into two types, one is tetrads in which the pollen grains are released in clusters of four such as T. latifolia and T. angustifolia , the other is monads in which the pollen grains occurs in single form such as T. angustifolia and T. orientalis [18]. The pollen in our experiment was consistent with the species T. orientalis Presl as described in the literature.…”

The Anatomy of the Mummy: Mortui Viventes Docent—When Ancient Mummies Speak to Modern Doctors

“…Finally, they critically evaluate the end result. Arguelles et al (2015) explore the topic of the content of the intestines of an ancient mummified person. The study of intestinal content in ancient human remains is crucial for the understanding e.g.…”