But if they have been replicated elsewhere, and if the warming that exposed Ötzi continues, the odds of finding additional ice mummies increase.

Ke Wang, an anthropologist at Fudan University and co-author of the 2023 genome paper, noted this possibility: “Perhaps more of these unexpected gems may come out of the ice, giving us even more invaluable windows on the past.”

However, the same warming that might expose these bodies also threatens to destroy them.

Human remains that have been protected by cold for thousands of years are extremely vulnerable to deterioration once exposed.

If a frozen mummy thaws and is exposed to normal temperatures and biological activity, the preservation that maintained it for millennia can fail in days.