The mummies appear to be relics of an ancient population that disappeared in Eurasia after the last ice age—one that was ancestral to Indigenous peoples living in Siberia and the Americas today. ScienceMagArchives
The Tarim Basin mummies have been a mystery ever since European explorers discovered them in northwestern China in the early 20th century. They were tall, wore wool felt hats and leather booties, and some had fair hair—all suggesting they were strangers from a strange land.
It’s “fantastic” to learn that these mummies were local Asians, says Alison Betts, an archaeologist of Scottish descent at the University of Sydney who was not involved with the work. “Honest to God, one looks like my granny, with her very elegant bone structure … and her legs in woolen leggings, with blue and orange wrapping and boots like Uggs.”
To test these hypotheses, molecular anthropologist Yinqiu Cui of Jilin University organized an international team to analyze the DNA across the genomes of 13 of the oldest mummies found at sites such as Xiaohe and Gumugou in the Tarim Basin, dating from 4100 to 3700 years ago.
Mummies were found buried in wooden boats with oars, which were covered with cowhides at this ancient cemetery at Xiaohe in the Tamir Basin.Nature