In 1983 Lindow Moss peat diggers unearthed a female human head; the next year they dug up a human leg. After an investigation a complete head & body were found and turned out to be an Iron Age man; in a very well-preserved state. Scientific endeavour tells us that he was 25 years old, wealthy, and had been killed as a result of being bashed on the head, garotted and having his throat cut around 55BCE. So much for the "good old days". As he was found in the Lindow peat bog he was named "Lindow Pete" or "Pete Marsh". The woman's head was over 1500 years old and became "Lindow Woman". Other human remains of Iron Age & Roman periods have been found. Today, Lindow Man has taken up permanent residence within a perspex box at the British Museum in London.
About once every ten years Lindow Man takes a trip to the Manchester Museum, part of the University of Manchester. Numerous people have emailed this web site to suggest that he ought to be permanently on show in Manchester.
Lindow Man in situ at the British Museum.
There are places in Lindow Moss where, if you fell in today, you would not get out without help. There are occasional stories in the local paper of unfortunate people being rescued by the fire brigade.
The extraction of peat from Lindow Moss is controversial and many local people object to it. It is mostly used to make potting compost although a suprising new use has been discovered. A range of beauty products marketed in the USA now contains peat from Lindow Moss; The Essence of Time Night Skin Conditioning Creme "contains unadulterated Lindow Moss Peat (now encapsulated.) Helps reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles while increasing hydration", and they also sell "skin-pampering Essence of Time Cleansing Bars. These luxurious, French-milled bars contain actual Lindow Moss Peat particles." Having seen Lindow Man at the British Museum I can say the long-term effect of Lindow Moss peat is to turn your skin to leather, but I guess the boffins at Essence of Time know what they're doing.
The corner where Lindow Man was found. |
More views of peat diggings on Lindow Moss. |
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As an epilogue to this grisly tale, the discovery of the head led to a Wilmslow resident, Peter Reyn-Bardt, whose home backed onto Lindow Moss confessing to the murder of his wife some years earlier. There must be a moral in there somewhere. More recently it is now thought that one of the heads identified as of Roman origin and held by a museum may actually be this bloke's wife. Further news as it happens...
Click on these links for more about: the Lindow Moss area; Lindow Common (Black lake, etc.); Lindow Shops.