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Forensic Science International 211 (2011) 34–40
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Forensic Science
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1. Introduction
Adipocere corpses have always posed special problems for the
medical examiner [1–66]. Considering the potential identification
of a body as a registered missing person, the most important
question is how much time has elapsed since death, thereby
pinpointing the suspected time of death. Adipocere formation can
also be found at historic and/or ancient human remains [67–79].
Here, a criminal investigation is not necessary due to lapse of time.
Adipocere occurs very often at corpses that are recovered from
water or glaciers [1,3–5,10–12,24,25,38,44,48,51,67]. It is a special
manifestation of the decomposition of a body’s fat tissue. It results
if a body is exposed to a damp low-oxygen environment for a
longer period. The adipose tissue is transformed into a gray-white
waxy substance [37,44]. The tissue initially has a paste-like
consistency [18,19,24] and hardens under appropriate conditions
over time to a consistency ranging from damp mortar to hard wax
[12,62].
In the literature, extraordinarily short times for the transfor-
mation of fat tissue to adipocere are reported: the periods extend
from a few days [65] over 16 days [31] to three weeks [2,53]. Most
authors observed an initial adipocere development within the
cutaneous structures after one to two months of downtime [12]. In
other cases, the complete cutaneous fat tissue was not transformed
after three months [27], and even after two years the internal
organs can remain unchanged [63]. In general, however, a
complete fat wax formation takes a few months in warm water
and 12–18 months in cold water [37]. The soonest spread of the
adipocere transformation to the musculature happens after about
six months. A complete transformation requires approximately
two years. Here, the influence of the water temperature, its depth,
and movement must also be taken into account. As this is a
chemical process, heat and higher electrolyte concentrations
accelerate the extent of the adipocere formation, whereas coldness
retards the process. The environmental conditions at greater
depths of water subsequently slow down the progress of fat
impregnation and hardening [4,5].
Once the adipocere transformation process is complete, the
reached condition can remain stable virtually indefinitely as long
as the environmental conditions do not change [49,50]. If the
Received 20 May 2010
Received in revised form 21 February 2011
Accepted 11 April 2011
Available online 14 May 2011
Keywords:
Forensic science
Adipocere
Physical anthropology
Vivianite
Blue encrustation
Radiocarbon dating
Taphonomy
Time since death
Diatoms
Brienzi
O¨tzi
torso was named ‘‘Brienzi’’ following the ‘‘Iceman’’ O¨tzi. Several outer parts of the body were incrusted;
the incrustation was in blue color. Further investigations showed that the bluish covering of parts of the
adipocere torso were a mineral known as Vivianite. Vivianite (Fe3(PO4)2�(H2O)8) is an iron phosphate
mineral with needle lengths between 100 and 150 mm. It is normally associated in a context with organic
archaeological and geological materials (some hundreds to millions of years old). Hitherto, it is only
described in three cases of human remains. We were able to reconstruct the following facts about
‘Brienzi’: The man drowned in Lake Brienz or in one of its tributaries during the 1700s. The body was
subsequently covered with sedimentation and thus buried under water. An earthquake produced an
underwater landslide which eventually exposed the corpse.
� 2011 Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +41 44 635 5611; fax: +41 44 635 6815.
E-mail address: michael.thali@irm.uzh.ch (M.J. Thali).
0379-0738/$ – see front matter � 2011 Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.
doi:10.1016/j.forsciint.2011.04.009
‘‘Brienzi’’ – The blue Vivianite man of Sw
estimation of an adipocere body
Michael J. Thali a,*, Bettina Lux b, Sandra Lo¨sch a, Fri
Philipp Feer a, Richard Dirnhofer a, Urs Ko¨nigsdorfer
aUniversity of Bern, Institute of Forensic Medicine, Bu¨hlstrasse 20, 3012 Bern, Switzerlan
b Institut fu¨r Humangenetik und Anthropologie, Universita¨tsklinikum, Parkstrasse 11, 890
A R T I C L E I N F O
Article history:
A B S T R A C T
In 1996, a cadaver in adipoc
jou r nal h o mep age: w ww.el
itzerland: Time since death
drich W. Ro¨sing b, Joachim Hu¨rlimann a,
, Ulrich Zollinger a
0 Ulm, Germany
e condition was discovered in a bay of the Brienzer See in Switzerland. The
 International
 evier . co m/lo c ate / fo r sc i in t
environmental conditions change, the length of time since death
can no longer be estimated. The determination of the time that has
elapsed since the death of an adipocere corpse is difficult. The
longer the time of death is in the past, the more the difficulty
increases.
In earlier times the opinion was held [13,14] that a rough time
of death estimation is possible by considering the composition of
2. Material and methods
2.1. The ‘‘Brienzi’’ case and the classical forensic investigations
On April 30, 1996, a cadaver in adipocere condition (Fig. 1) was discovered in a bay
of the Brienzer See in Switzerland. At that time, the corpse was thought to belong to a
dead sheep. The forensic examination revealed that it was actually a headless human
torso with three skeletonized partial extremities extending from the trunk. The soft
tissues and the trunk organs were completely transformed into adipocere. Some outer
parts of the torso – which the Swiss media affectionately named ‘‘Brienzi’’, following
the ‘‘Iceman’’ O¨tzi – were incrusted in a blue color (Figs. 2 and 3). The following
examinations were performed on the discovered torso:
� Findings: Available for investigation were the complete trunk in adipocere
condition, the complete left humerus and both complete femora. The head, the
complete right arm, the left forearm and both lower legs were missing. Both
femora and the humerus had traces of adipocere soft tissue at the proximal ends, at
the distal ends without any soft tissue.
� Sampling and external corpse examination: During the external examination,
laboratory samples were taken from many different parts of the body. Here,
biological (e.g. algae, micro organisms, pollen) and mineralogical traces (e.g. blue
encrustation) were secured. After that bones were dissected for anthropological
investigations and measurements.
� Photographic and radiological documentation: A detailed photographic documen-
tation with a precise written description and a radiological examination were
performed.
� Sex determination: Due to the difficult assessment of the primary and/or
secondary sex characteristics on this incomplete body, the gender determination
was based upon morphologic-anthropologic characteristics [81–83] and mole-
culargenetic DNA analysis. In this case the anthropologic determination of the sex
was performed mainly on the pelvis.
� Age at death estimation: To determine the individual’s age at time of death, we
Fig. 1. Adipocere body ‘‘Brienzi’’, found in Lake Brienz (arrow).
M.J. Thali et al. / Forensic Science International 211 (2011) 34–40 35
the corpse lipids. It was also often attempted to estimate the time
of death according to the degree of bone surface decompositions
and the degree of organic tissue preservation (usually indirectly via
discoloration, precipitation or fluorescence), etc. The results were
usually quite unsatisfactory [45,80]. There are numerous recent
observations and experiments with highly variable time data as
well as mathematical model conceptions that deal with the chaotic
intercorrelation between the numerous influential factors. This
modern prevalent pointof view considers the earlier methods of
dating, in principle, not possible at all.
The goal of this paper is to establish new ways to estimate the
time since death of adipocere corpses – based on the following
unusual case.
Fig. 2. Vivianite on the
used skeletal characteristics [81,83,84]. Unfortunately an age at death diagnosis
was not possible on the cranium [85] or on the teeth (e.g. tooth cementum
annulation [86]) because the complete head was missing. But we were able to
investigate the medial ends of the claviculae (facies articularis sternalis) [87], the
pubic bone symphysis and the cancellous bone structure of both femora
[80,81,83,84].
� Body height determination: To determine the body height of individuals in Central
Europe, the formulas of Olivier are primarily recommended [88]. Although the
formulas of Bach (females) [89] and Breitinger (males) [90] are generally used in
Switzerland, they present several substantial disadvantages [91]. Since forensic
cases demand high degree of precision, methods of Fully and Pineau should
always be applied because these body height formulas consistently include actual
skeleton measurements [92].
� Diatoms/river rock algae: We performed a diatom examination because it provides
an important indication for the drowning medium and perhaps even reveals
details of the circumstances of the person’s death [93]. Water samples were taken
 adipocere body.
3. Results
The medical, radiologic, and anthropologic investigations
(Figs. 4 and 5) of the adipocere torso determined that it had
belonged to a male individual. The pelvic bones were dissected
after the autopsy for anthropological investigations [80–83]. The
ssue and bone structures.
M.J. Thali et al. / Forensic Science International 211 (2011) 34–4036
at the cadaver discovery site – from the surface and from the bottom – to make a
follow-up diatom analysis possible.
� Time since death determination: In comparison to earlier suboptimal and not
quantifiable methods there are two main methods which link continuously
passing processes to the time factor: aspartic acid racemisation and radiocarbon
dating.
The aspartic acid racemisation takes advantage of the phenomenon that
optically active high-molecular substances gradually convert from a singularly
natural L-form to a unnatural D-form. The most important variable is, same
as to all other chemical reactions, the temperature. An increase in heat
accelerates the racemisation process. If both the deposition conditions since
death and the time of origin of the examined substance are known, a
determination of time since death can be achieved with an average regressive
error of 2.1 years [94].
The second method to determine the time since death is based on the
Fig. 3. Vivianite on soft ti
concentration of radiocarbon (14C) in the substance [95]. Atmospheric nuclear
weapon tests have raised the concentration of 14C in the atmosphere since 1945.
Subsequently a longer time since death must be considered for samples with
concentrations significantly below today’s regularly used reference value for the
year 1950 [96]. The maximum surplus activity reached 185% in 1962. In a case of
excessive radioactivity, the result cannot finally be assigned to a specific year for the
following reasons:
(1) Due to an increase during surface tests and a decrease after them, both a rising
and a falling curve exist. A sample with x amount of surplus activity can be
assigned to either curve. In principle, a distinction is not possible. More external
information is required.
(2) The rate of carbon turnover in the human body also plays a key role, it is age-
dependent. A younger body, converts carbon (all three isotopes: 12C, 13C and
14C) more rapidly than an older or adult body. Depending on certain deceases
the turnover can also be higher.
(3) The isotope regulation in the human body is a mixture from all the living years
of an individual. The high upward activity curve values of individual sequential
years can greatly vary.
Thus we have here a three-factor system where radiocarbon content, time of
death and individual age at death all play a role and the relationship between these
factors is not linear.
These determinants were used to develop a multiple regression [97,98]. The
reasons for the fact that this dating method has only now succeeded are: the
determination of the structure and discovery of the age dependence, the estimation
of a carbon turnover rate much lower than anything presumed in the literature so
far and, above all, the development of the regression. Even though the excess
radioactivity caused by nuclear tests has been known for a long time, and has
already been used, for example, to verify whether or not a Whiskey was actually 25
years old, as stated on its label [99], or not.
autopsy also revealed the seminal vesicle and the prostate. The sex
Fig. 4. Heart with adipocere and coronar sclerosis.
presence of river rock algae indicated with a high probability that
the man drowned in the Lake Brienz close to the shore, in the area
of the so-called ‘‘New Aare River Delta’’.
The radiocarbon dating and the subsequent computational
interpretation allowed us to limit the time of death temporally
based upon measuring ‘‘Briezi’’ bone collagen and the finding of a
cherry pit in the gastro-intestinal tract during the autopsy.
Radiocarbon dating was performed by the Institut fu¨r Teilchen-
physik, ETH, Zu¨rich, Switzerland (G. Bonani). The two samples
resulted in an average radiocarbon content of 97.1 � 0.4%
M.J. Thali et al. / Forensic Science International 211 (2011) 34–40 37
was also confirmed by a DNA analysis. The examination of the
medial ends of the Claviculae (Facies articularis sternalis) [87], the
structure of the pubic bone symphysis (Facies symphysialis), and the
cancellous bone structure of both femora heads (cross-section)
determined the age at death between 25 and 30 years
[80,81,83,84,100] (Table 1). The main emphasis was put on the
feature Claviculae (Facies articularis sternalis).
The femora were measured and a body height of approximately
155–165 cm was calculated [88,92]. No bite marks of animals were
detected on the bones or on the adipocere tissue.
From the algological perspective, it can be concluded – due to
the diatom concentration and composition found in the bone
marrow of the adipocere torso – that the person drowned [93]. The
Fig. 5. Cherry stones in the stomach and the intestinal tract.
Table 1
Age at death estimation according to bone characteristics.
Estimated age
at death
Reference
Cancellous bone structure (prox. femora) 23–40 years [100]
Facies symphysialis 23–40 years [100]
Facies articularis sternalis 24–30 years [87]
Table 2
radiocarbon dating values of Brienzi.
Sample AMS- 14C (years BP) 
ETH-15785 Bone collagen 180 � 40 
ETH-15789 Cherry pit 205 � 40 
ETH-15785/9 Mean 190 � 30 
compared with the 1950 standard. Such averaging is only permitted
for historical material with longer time since death periods. It should
be noted that cherry pits are formed in one single year and thus
exhibit no mixture or aging effects. According to the Zu¨rich Algorithm
for conversion [101], this value indicates that the individual died in
historical times. The most probable time-of-death year is 1770, �58
years. One sigma (68%) revealed a time span of 1712–1828 AD and
two sigma (95%) suggested a time span of 1659–1951 AD (Table 2).
According to the standard normal variable z of the Gauss
Distribution, there is a probability that the body does, however,
originate from modern time: If the individual is assumed to have
lived short before the atom bomb summit, the value should match
the standard of 1950 exactly 100%. This value differs from the
determined value of 97.1 � 0.4% by z = 7.25, orP > 0.01%, meaning
this consideration is practically not possible [102].
Further natural science investigations determined the bluish
covering on parts of the fat wax torso to be the mineral known as
Vivianite (Figs. 2 and 3). Additionally, fine sand and mica adhering
to its surface were detected under the polarization microscope.
Vivianite is an iron phosphate mineral, Fe3(PO4)2�(H2O)8, with
needle lengths between 100 and 150 mm. It is an organic material
formation with archaeological and geological origin (some
hundreds to millions of years old) and is described in only three
cases of human remains. Vivianite grows on phosphate-rich, iron-
poor substrates under damp, oxygen-poor and phosphate-poor
environmental conditions if sufficient dissolved iron is available.
Under anoxic conditions, Vivianite is in an un-oxidized condition
whitish gray, but oxidizes rapidly to well recognizable indigo deep-
blue aggregates if it comes in contact with air.
Due to the sand inclusions on the surface of the Vivianite in the
‘‘Brienzi’’ case, it can be clearly stated that the Vivianite was
formed when the corpse was completely buried in fine sandy
sediment where a relatively oxygen-poor environment prevailed.
Any mineral formation in open water, even in a reduced
environment, could hardly have led to the formation of rough
crystalline Sphalerite (mineral). The formation of the Vivianite at
the point where the organic material met the fine sediment can be
explained by the simultaneous diffusion of phosphate (from the
corpse) and iron (from the lake sediment).
One month after the discovery of the corpse we were informed
that investigations of the lake Brienz that were performed
coincidentally at about the same time as the corpse was found,
revealed a strong water turbidity (murkiness) in the area below
200 m of the approximately 280 m deep lake. At depths of
approximately 230 m, the water had a greatly increased conduc-
d13C (%) Calibrated age (BC/AD) Sigma
�20.9 � 1.1
�23.7 � 1.2
AD 1654–1701 (20.8%)
AD 1719–1818 (58.8%)
AD 1918–1955 (20.4%)
AD 1712–1828 (68%) 1s
AD 1659–1951 (95%) 2s
M.J. Thali et al. / Forensic Science International 211 (2011) 34–4038
tivity which is an indication of free ions in the water. At the same
time, the water’s oxygen content decreased substantially. Since no
change of temperature was measured in this deep layer of the
water, the inflow of a cloudy current of water into the area must be
discounted. Therefore, the increase of turbidity and conductivity as
well as the decrease of the oxygen content without simultaneous
inflow from oxygen-rich water currents into this deep layer of the
lake were explained with an underground landslide [103]. The
exact cause of the undersea landslide that was suspected due to
these parameters could not be determined. However, about one
week before the discovery of the torso in Lake Brienz, two weak
earthquakes were registered in Switzerland.
The mineralogical identification of the sand, silt, and clay that
was found on the corpse revealed that all grains were of crystalline
origin and matched the crystalline composition of minerals
collected from the location where the Aare River flows into Lake
Brienz.
4. Discussion
It is a great challenge for the forensic sciences if corpses are
discovered that show advanced stages of post mortal decomposi-
tion, e.g. in adipocere condition, and if important identifying
characteristics are missing. When human remains are recovered
from aquatic environments, the soft-tissue has often disappeared,
body parts are frequently disarticulated [24]. At the ‘‘Brienzi’’ case,
the pelvic bones allowed a clear sex determination. The pelvis has
the best bone markers for this as the female pelvis must be capable
to giving birth and is thus adapted to this condition. The estimation
of the age at death was more difficult as important parts of the
body were missing, e.g., Cranium and teeth. So we applied a
complex method to determine the age [80,81,83,84,100] (Table 1)
with the main emphasis lying on the Claviculae (Facies articularis
sternalis).
If a body must be identified, the determination of the time of
death is an important step to shorten or exclude a criminal
investigation. Radiocarbon dating is a common method for
geological, archaeological, and anthropological questions. Because
of the radioactive half-life of 5730 years its application span
extends over the range from approximately 100–150,000 years.
Environmental changes caused by humans can also play a role in
limiting time spans. One of these changes is the atom bomb effect
on the atmosphere which makes it even possible to use this
methodology to pinpoint happenings in very recent years.
According to our broad modern-day understanding of the
reconstruction of time variables [95–98] we can generally deduce
that only certain physical and chemical operational sequences
provide precise results. However, chaotic interacting decay and
decomposition factors do not belong to this group.
According to the data and processes previously described, we
were able to make the following reconstruction of ‘Brienzi’: This
man drowned in Lake Brienz or in one of its tributaries during the
1700s. The body was subsequently covered with sedimentation
and lay buried approximately 180–280 years in the lake sediment
under largely anoxic conditions. In combination with the
observations from the Office of Water Preservation, we conclude
that it was then most probably set free by an underground earth
slide in the area of the so-called New Aare River Delta of Lake
Brienz. It probably had a remaining specific weight of slightly
above 1 so that it floated and was driven to its discovery site at the
lakeshore by current, wind, and waves over an estimated distance
of 8 km (5 miles).
The enormous sediment slide in the Lake Brienz led to a long
lasting greatly reduced oxygen concentration in the deep water of
the lake. For the Bernese Office of Water Preservation this
phenomenon represents a once-in-a-century happening in Lake
Brienz [103]. Discoveries of such old corpses are not very likely to
be expected on a regular basis. However, as this discovery in
Switzerland shows, more future findings are not absolutely
impossible.
The mass spectroscopy radiocarbon dating also permitted
conclusions about the formation of the Vivianite crystals. Until
now, Vivianite was almost exclusively observed in cases where
several centuries had passed; primarily on bones at archaeological
findings [104]. Older finds of Vivianite had a minimum age of
several 1000 years in common. Recent formation of Vivianite was,
to the best of our knowledge, observed only three times at human
bodies:
� In the German Lake Walchen [4,105] several partly skeletonized,
partly fat wax transformed human corpses were found. One of
the corpses was weighted down with an iron plate fastened
around the torso. Between the iron plate and the fat wax torso
and skeletonized structures a crumbly white substance was
found which changed its color to blue in the course of a few
hours’ contact with the air. Based upon the clothing remains of
the corpse it was determined that this human body had come
into the lake at a maximum of 50 years before and at a minimum
of 30 years before. The authors explained that the crystal
aggregates could only form in such a short time because of the
slow corrosion of the iron plate that released sufficient iron II
ions so that Vivianite crystals could grow directly on particularly
phosphate-rich parts of the bones.
� Mann et al. [106] reported on the formation of Vivianite on the
bones of pilots who were buried in an oily environment for 25
years.
� Vivianite was also found outside the skin, in the skin, and in the
lung tissue of the 5300-year-old Iceman ‘‘O¨tzi’’ [107–109]. It is
also assumed to have crystallized after the death of the Iceman. It
possibly derives fromcontact zones between the body surface
and iron-containing rocks. On some locations of his skin blue
incrustations were found which also were interpreted as air
oxidized Vivianite.
The find in Lake Brienz deals with the most recent and also the
oldest corpse discovery where Vivianite grew on a body that was
found in a lake. The unusual characteristics of this find
impressively point out the importance of interdisciplinary work
between forensic medicine, physical anthropology, biology and
geology.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the following supporters: Dr. Kirchofer,
Biologisches Institut Bern; Dr. Schwizer, Geologisches Institut
Bern; Dr. Hoffmann, Naturhistorisches Institut Bern; Dr. Bonani,
ETH Zu¨rich; Prof. Silvassy, Wien; Dr. Zeh, Gewa¨sserschutzamt
Bern; Oliver Schmidt, ETH, EAWAG, Kastanienbaum; Dipl. Biol.
Negahnaz Moghaddam for support; Korbinian Seitz for English
editing.
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	‘‘Brienzi’’ - The blue Vivianite man of Switzerland: Time since death estimation of an adipocere body
	Introduction
	Material and methods
	The ‘‘Brienzi’’ case and the classical forensic investigations
	Results
	Discussion
	Acknowledgements
	References