Scientists have pinpointed the likely birthplace of Oetzi the famous Iceman. The ancient hunter probably spent his childhood in what is now the Italian South Tyrol village of Feldthurns. Evidence suggests his lifelong travels were confined to a 60-kilometre (37-mile) range south-east of where his body was found. The 5,300-year-old frozen mummy emerged from a melting glacier along the mountainous border between Italy and Austria in 1991. Scientists have been carrying out detailed studies of how he lived and died ever since. The latest research, published in the journal Science, looked at isotopes found in the Iceman's teeth and bones. They were compared with soil and water samples over a wide area of the Alps. Biominerals from the diet are deposited in the body at different times - in the teeth, for example, during childhood, and in the bones in adult life. This allowed researchers in Australia, the United States and Switzerland to deduce where Oetzi lived at various stages of his life. The team believes his movements were restricted to a few valleys within 60 kilometres south east of where his body was discovered.
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