杏吧原创

King Midas鈥檚 high-meat diet helped fuel the destruction of his tomb, say US archaeologists.

The 8^th century builders lined the tomb with woods with anti-microbial properties to protect the grave. But an unusual soft-rot fungus found in the tomb wreaked 鈥渦ncharacteristically extensive鈥� damage, leaving researchers wondering why.

The fungus consumes nitrogen, which is found in high levels in protein-rich foods, as well as human remains. Timothy Filley of Purdue University, US, and colleagues analysed nitrogen isotope concentrations in samples taken throughout the tomb in Gordion, Turkey. Their results suggest the king ate a high-meat diet and that his corpse was an excellent source of nutrients for the microbes.

鈥淎nalysis of samples from the floor around the coffin showed the spreading of the king鈥檚 nutrient through the tomb,鈥� says Timothy Filley of Purdue University, who led the research. Although only his skeleton remains, 鈥淢idas left behind an isotope ghost in the wood,鈥� he says.

Extremely dry conditions in the tomb over the past 2,700 years were also ideal for the growth of this type of fungus, Filley adds.

Barbecued meats

Earlier analysis of the organic contents of vessels found in the tomb allowed researchers to reconstruct the mourners鈥� funerary meal.

鈥淭heir analysis indicated the meal was dominated by barbecued meats,鈥� Filley鈥檚 team write in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. This is consistent with the ¹⁵N values from in and around the coffin and tabletop and the suggestion that the king鈥檚 diet was derived substantially from meats, the researchers say.

High concentrations of ¹⁵N in a sample indicate an organism high in the food chain 鈥� which would include funerary meat, or the king himself. Samples of wood that were not degraded by the fungus showed low ¹⁵N levels.

Cedar and juniper

The tomb was first excavated in 1957. There is no proof that it belongs to Midas, but there is strong circumstantial evidence, including the presence of 鈥渞ich array of furniture and cloth befitting a ruler,鈥� says Filley.

The tomb builders used decay-resistant cedar for the coffin and huge juniper logs to protect the pine walls of the inner tomb chamber. But the soft-rot fungus flourish so well that most of the wood has decayed.

Although the first archaeologists to enter the tomb did not find the gold associated with Midas鈥檚 legend, they did find elaborately inlaid furniture and the most comprehensive Iron Age drinking set ever found.

Journal reference: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (vol 2, no 43)