The average human body takes about 8 to 12 years to fully decompose to a skeleton, but in peat bogs around the world an average body can stay in the bog itself without decomposition for more than 4,000 years on average. These types of wetlands can be found all over the world but they are mostly found in northern europe. So don't try to go looking for any bog mummies around here. Even though we know a lot about these dead bodies the question still remains who exactly were these people? How did they end up in a bog? To know exactly what bog mummies are you need to know where they come from. These mummies form in a special type of wetland called a bog. Bogs are very dangerous places because of their spongy nature. If you take a walk in a bog and step in the wrong place you could get really stuck. One thing that makes a wetland way different than a bog is because wetlands receive their water from more than one source. On the other hand, bogs can only get their water from precipitation (EPA.Gov). Bogs are very similar to other types of wetlands, but they are also very different different.…show more content… First the acid in the water has to destroy the decomposing bacteria in the water itself(Chemistry of Bogs). A very special type of moss is essential to that procces.It is called sphagnum moss. The sphagnum moss sucks out all of the calcium left in the dead humans body so all that is left is just soft tissue. When their is only soft tissue in the body that means only the skin and major organs stay in place. Even though their are no bones left the body still keeps its shape. This moss also covers the top of the bog not letting in any oxygen. Oxygen is essential to decomposition. The process that these iron age victims of murder and sacrifice have become some of the best preserved pieces of history is truly a
