Accidental preservation in the desert
In the Tarim Basin of Xinjiang, the hyper-arid salt flats of the Taklamakan Desert created the perfect conditions for natural mummification. Unlike the embalmed mummies of Egypt, the Tarim Mummies were preserved accidentally by the dry and cold desert environment. The oldest of these remains date back to about 2000 BCE. Discovered beginning in the early 20th century, these mummies show remarkably preserved details, including intact clothing, light-colored hair, and even eyelashes.
One of the most well-known individuals is the "Beauty of Loulan," discovered in 1980. She dates to around 1800 BCE and was buried in a simple woolen cloth, a felt hat, and leather shoes. Analysis of her remains suggests she was between 40 and 48 years old when she died, possibly from a lung ailment aggravated by sand and charcoal dust. Another significant find is the "Cherchen Man," who died around 1000 BCE. He was a tall man for his time, with reddish-brown hair and a ginger beard, and was buried in a red twill tunic and leggings with a tartan-like pattern.
A surprising and complex ancestry
The most startling aspect of the earliest Tarim Mummies is their physical appearance. With long noses, deep-set eyes, and blonde, red, or brown hair, their features are not what researchers expected to find in Bronze Age Central Asia. For years, this suggested they were migrants from Western Eurasia, perhaps related to Indo-European groups from Siberia or the Iranian plateau.
A 2021 genetic study changed these theories. DNA analysis of 13 of the earliest mummies, dating from 2100 to 1700 BCE, revealed they were not newcomers. Instead, they were a genetically isolated, local population. Their ancestry traces back predominantly to a Pleistocene-era population known as the Ancient North Eurasians (ANE), a group that has also contributed to the ancestry of modern Europeans and Native Americans. The Tarim Mummies inherited about 72% of their ancestry from ANE, with the remaining 28% from local Ancient Northeast Asian populations. This unique genetic makeup explains their Western-like features without them being recent migrants; they are descendants of a very old Eurasian lineage that had long been in the region.
Sophisticated textiles and a pastoral life
The artifacts buried with the mummies show their lives. They were agropastoralists who cultivated wheat and millet and herded sheep and goats. Their clothing shows a mastery of textile production. Woolen fabrics, including a diagonal twill weave strikingly similar to those found in European salt mines from the same period, point to the use of sophisticated looms. Felt was also common, used for hats, socks, and blankets. The "Cherchen Man" was buried with ten different hats.
Some of the most remarkable finds relate to their diet. Small, yellowish clumps found on the necks of several mummies from the Xiaohe cemetery were identified as cheese. Dating back 3,600 years, this is the oldest cheese ever discovered. Genetic analysis shows it was a kefir cheese made from cow and goat milk. The presence of ephedra twigs, a medicinal plant, in a leather bag buried with one individual suggests its use in rituals or medicine. These finds show a resourceful and culturally distinct people who thrived for centuries in the oases of a formidable desert.