WOMEN HAVE INQUIRED ABOUT the possibility of having his baby. Scientists the world over plead for a chance to examine him. Museums compete for bits of his clothing and tools. Nations and provinces bicker over who has custody rights, while anthropologists struggle to discern how he lived and what other ancient secrets he is destined to reveal.
Through it all, the object of this desire and celebrity has remained mute, though his very appearance on the scene has spoken volumes. He is known as the Iceman, a Stone Age wanderer found one year ago remarkably preserved in the melting Similaun glacier...