Gunnister Man

The Gunnister Man is the name given to the remains of a man buried around 1700 in a peat bog at Gunnister, in Northmavine on the Mainland of Shetland, Scotland. He was discovered on 12 May 1951 by two men cutting peat for fuel. Although little of his body survived, his woollen clothing and personal possessions were exceptionally well preserved.

The man had been deliberately buried fully dressed, wearing several layers of woollen clothing, including a shirt, breeches, stockings, gloves, two knitted caps and heavily worn and repaired outer garments. A knitted purse contained three coins dated between 1681 and 1690, including coins from the present-day Netherlands and Sweden, which together with his clothing date the burial to around the beginning of the 18th century. The surviving textiles provide evidence for stranded knitting in Shetland by this period, while the purse is believed to be the earliest known example of two-colour knitting found there. His identity and cause of death are unknown.

Discovery

"Gunnister Man's Grave" notice

The individual now known as Gunnister Man was discovered on 12 May 1951, approximately 250 years after his burial, by James Bigland and James Johnson, who were cutting peat for fuel in a bog at Gunnister, in the parish of Northmavine on the Mainland of Shetland, Scotland. While removing peat, they uncovered human remains together with clothing and personal possessions, approximately 75 centimetres (2 feet 6 inches) below the peat surface. The arrangement of the body and accompanying objects indicated that the man had been deliberately buried rather than deposited naturally in the bog.

Stone that marks the findspot

The two men carefully exposed the remains before reporting the discovery to the authorities, an action later commended by the investigators. The site was subsequently examined by archaeologist J. R. C. Hamilton, while the recovered clothing and associated objects were transferred later that year to the National Museum of Antiquities of Scotland in Edinburgh for conservation and study.

A commemorative stone erected by the Northmavine History Group now marks the approximate location of the discovery.

Condition

The only remains of the body were a piece of skull with dark hair, finger and toe nails, fragments of bone from the sleeves and in one stocking. The man's clothes survived burial in the peat in excellent condition.

Clothing and associated items

The Gunnister Man was buried fully dressed in woollen clothing, which was well preserved when the body was discovered. He wore a woollen shirt, a long coat with short, wide breeches, and a heavily worn and patched outer jacket. A leather belt with a brass buckle was found around his waist.

The shirt had been repaired, with patches on the sleeves and a mended hole at the back of the waist. The breeches were about 57 centimetres (22 inches) long and had been taken in by about 13 centimetres (5.1 inches) at the waist. Although similar in colour to the coat, the breeches were made from slightly different woollen cloth.

His knitted stockings reached above his knees and had been extensively repaired. The feet of both stockings had worn away and been replaced. One was replaced with part of another stocking, roughly sewn on in four layers, while the other had a replacement foot made from coarse woven woollen cloth. The stockings also had holes around the knees, some of which had been repaired.

The knitted gloves had decorative stitches on the backs of the hands and gauntlets and resembled other gloves of the period. The right glove had a large hole in the palm patched with woven cloth. It was found beside the left side of the body rather than on his hand.

One knitted cap remained on his head. It had a turned-up patterned brim, with holes and marks from a brooch. A second, plainer knitted cap was found inside his clothing on his right side, folded around a horn spoon.

A knitted purse was found inside the breeches on his left side. It measured about 14 by 9.5 centimetres (5.5 by 3.7 inches) and closed with a drawstring. It was probably originally a natural mixed grey colour with a pattern in red and white and had three tassels made from the three colours. The purse contained a folded silk ribbon and three coins. Two were from what is now the Netherlands: a six-stuiver coin from Nijmegen dated 1690 and a two-stuiver coin from Overijssel dated 1681. The third was a 1⁄6 Öre coin from Sweden dated 1683.

Other objects were found with the body. A small horn was inside the breeches, and a quill was found inside the coat. A birch stick lay across the legs. Near the feet were a small wooden stave tub, a wooden knife handle and two flat pieces of wood. Two lengths of woollen cord were found near the legs.

A small fragment of open-work knitting with a pattern of three concentric diamonds was also recovered. It had no finished edge and measured about 11 by 7 centimetres (4.3 by 2.8 inches). Similar fragments of knitting were sewn into the lining of the man's jacket.

It is not known whether the knitted garments were made in Shetland or elsewhere. The knitted purse is believed to be the earliest example of two-colour knitting found in Shetland. The surviving textiles provide evidence of stranded knitting in Shetland by the beginning of the 18th century.

Cause of death

The Gunnister Man's cause of death is unknown. His clothing and the coins found in his purse date his death to around 1700 CE, but so little of his body survived that there is little physical evidence of how he died.

One possibility is that he died while travelling across the moor in winter. In 1951, Shetland antiquarian Peter Moar suggested that the man had died in wintry weather and was found and buried where he lay later in the year. His clothing also indicates cold weather. He wore several layers of woollen clothing, including a ragged outer jacket apparently added for extra warmth, as well as long stockings, gloves and a knitted cap.

At the time, Shetland had few roads and much travel was on foot. The Shetland Museum and Archives has suggested that the man may have become lost or suffered an accident that left him unable to continue walking, which could have led to death from exposure or starvation. His grave was on an uninhabited moor, away from any settlement.

Murder has also been considered. No wound marks were found on his surviving clothing and his purse still contained three coins, but the Shetland Museum and Archives notes that an attack could have killed him without damaging his clothes. His cause of death remains unknown.

Exhibition and replicas

All objects recovered from the burial were taken to Edinburgh and are now in the collections of the National Museum of Scotland. Some are on permanent display in the museum's galleries. Immediately after the burial was discovered, the finds were taken to a local house, where residents knitted replicas of the stockings and purse. These replicas are now displayed at Tangwick Haa Museum in Northmavine, Shetland. In 2009, Shetland Museum and Archives produced full replicas of every object from the burial for a permanent Gunnister Man display in Lerwick.

The knitted purse was originally a natural mixed grey colour with stripes in red and white. It is difficult to determine whether the man's garments were knitted in Shetland or elsewhere, but even if they were imported they demonstrate that stranded knitting, now known as Fair Isle knitting, was present in Shetland by the beginning of the 18th century. His gloves are finely knitted with decorative stitches on the backs of the hands and gauntlets, and resemble other gloves of the period. The right glove is more heavily worn and patched than the left, suggesting that he was right-handed.

See also

• List of bog bodies from Great Britain

External links

• Shetlopedia article