Ötzi also called Ötzi the Iceman, the Similaun Man from Hauslabjoch, Homo tyrolensis, and the Hauslabjoch mummy) is a well-preserved natural mummy of a man who lived about 3,300 BC.
He is Europe's oldest natural human mummy, and has offered an unprecedented view of Chalcolithic Europeans. His body and belongings are displayed in the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Bolzano, South Tyrol, Italy.
The 5,300-year-old 'ice mummy' known as Ötzi suffered from the world's first-known case of Lyme disease, a bacterial parasite spread by ticks, according to new DNA analysis.
Ötzi, who was 46 at the time of his death and measured 5ft2, also had brown eyes, had relatives in Sardinia, and was lactose intolerant.
Ötzi was also predisposed to heart disease.
The new research focused on the DNA in the nuclei of Ötzi's cells, and could yield further insights into the famous 'ice mummy's life.
He was unearthed in September 1991 by a couple of German tourists trekking through the Oetz Valley, after which he was named.
He was about 46 years old when he met his death.
The iceman has been crucial to our understanding of how prehistoric people lived, what they wore and even what they ate.
Researchers examining the contents of his stomach worked out that his final meal consisted of venison and ibex meat.
Archaeologists believe Otzi, who was carrying a bow, a quiver of arrows and a copper axe, may have been a hunter or warrior killed in a skirmish with a rival tribe.
Researchers say he was about 159cm tall (5ft 2.5in), 46 years old, arthritic and infested with whipworm, an intestinal parasite.
His perfectly preserved body is stored in his own specially designed cold storage chamber at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Italy at a constant temperature of -6°C. Visitors can view the mummy through a small window.
Alongside his remains is a new Otzi model created using 3D images of the corpse and forensic technology by two Dutch artists – Alfons and Adrie Kennis.
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