Oldest blood found in Oetzi, the Iceman

Researchers found the oldest red blood cells ever identified while examining the 5,300-year-old Iceman named Oetzi, according to the BBC.

The frozen body was discovered in the Italian Alps in 1991. A study published in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface on May 1 showed that the way in which Oetzi was frozen and preserved helped maintain his blood cells, reported the BBC.

The Iceman, discovered by hikers, was so well preserved that researchers were able to estimate his age, health and last meals, according to LiveScience. An arrow wound on his shoulder that sliced an artery was his likely cause of death, but no blood cells had ever been found before.

Albert Zink, a biological anthropologist leading the study, said, "It was very surprising, because we didn't really expect to find compete red blood cells." He continued, "We hoped to find maybe some remnants or shrunken red blood cells, but these are looking like a modern-day sample; the dimensions are the same," according to LiveScience.

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Zink told Reuters, "So far, this is the clearest evidence of the oldest blood cells." The German and Italian researchers said they used an atomic force microscope to examine the arrow wound, and found red blood cells which had the classic doughnut shape that is seen in healthy people now.

Zink said that the discovery that red blood cells can last so long "will also open up possibilities for forensic science and may help lead to a more precise determination of the age of blood spots in crime investigations," according to Reuters.

The discovery also added another clue to the mystery surrounding Oetzi's death, because of the presence of the protein fibrin, associated with blood clots. Because fibrin decays over time, the theory that Oetzi died a few days after being wounded was disproved, said Zink, according to the BBC.

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