I have been reading about the Tollund man? Why did his body survive?
   Rose, Web Post

Dr. dig responds:
Tollund man's body survived because his body lay completely covered by a peat bog. Peat bogs are both wet and acidic, and contain very little oxygen. This special environment means that they include few of the organisms that attack dead flesh and make it decay. At the same time, sphagnum moss within the bog produces a substance known as sphagnan that actually helps preserve the body by taking calcium out of the bones (making the bones soft but giving the bacteria even less to feed on) and by preserving the skin, which turns dark brown. If the body is covered quickly and not exposed to air, soft tissue and hair will survive. Tollund man is perhaps the best known of the north-western European bog bodies -- he was found lying on his side, with a rope around his neck.