Throng

Concluding this week is the historical documentary series that explores ancient civilisations. Using CT scans, advanced imaging and DNA testing, this programme attempts to unlock the stories behind a series of mysterious deaths in northern Europe’s ancient bogs.

Across the moors of northern Europe, peatcutters digging into the soil for fuel have unearthed hundreds of well-preserved mummies. Investigators have puzzled for decades over the victims’ various injuries, which have included slit throats, decapitation, disembowelment, smashed bones and stab marks. Some bodies have even been found with nooses still snug around their necks. Who were these people, mangled and mired in the bogs of northern Europe?

Continuing this week is the historical documentary series that explores ancient civilisations. This film travels to a remote part of China where hundreds of mummies with Caucasian features were found buried in the desert. Using forensic techniques, archaeological experts attempt to explain the origins of these mysterious remains and unlock a secret that could throw new light on human history.

More than 1,000 years before any known contact between the East and West, hundreds of mummies – many with Caucasian characteristics – were buried in a distant Chinese desert. Miraculously preserved in the dry environment, these fragile human remains now represent an extraordinary puzzle for modern-day archaeologists. Who were these people and what can they reveal about mankind’s distant past?