You walked along the path, above the tree line, high in the mountain ranges, soaring peaks in every direction, snow crunching beneath your feet. You followed the sticks, cane-like markers on the pass, signposts to guide your way, decorated metal sword tucked into a wooden scabbard at your side, carrying a wineskin, wearing shoes of soft leather. Perhaps you were leading a mule packed with wares, or riding it. Perhaps it bolted and you lost your footing. Perhaps you fell together, down and down into a deep crevice. Perhaps you died of hunger or thirst or simply froze. Now, the sun has melted your icy crypt and unearthed you. What unsuspecting hiker tripped and stopped, unsteady for a moment, only to behold your broken leg bones, the mule’s hoof, your skull. There you were, surrounded by dirt-covered knives and coins clustered together like evidence in a crime scene. Weary traveler, preserved for so long in horfrost, nature’s reliquary opened, spilling out a trail of relics, a scattering of puzzle pieces, wood and metal and leather and bone, tiny clues to your life. What were you thinking as you fell to your death: Did you worry about your cargo lost on the side of the mountain, warring politicians, the state of the world? Did you think of love or your mother or your children at home? Were your last moments a flash of blue sky and the beauty of the alabaster snow against the summit? Did you look up at the sun and wonder why the mule had stumbled, why now, when you had come so far on this winding path?
Author’s Note:
This poem was prompted by a photo essay in this week’s Business Insider which showed ancient artifacts that hikers are finding on trails in the Alps, now revealed as a result of melting permafrost due to climate change. Relics ranging from bones to swords to shoes provide clues to travelers from ancient times.
Business Insider, Archaeological Mysteries Hikers Are Finding in the Alpshttps
Here are some similar articles and photos on this subject from recent years:
4,000-Year-Old Artifacts Found in Swiss Alpine Pass from Live Science: https://www.livescience.com/60640-4000-year-old-bronze-age-artifacts-photos.html
Men’s Journal, Archaeologists Have Unearthed Extremely Rare Ancient Roman Walls in the Swiss Alps.https://www.mensjournal.com/news/archaeologists-ancient-roman-walls-swiss-alps
For the history and supply chain nerds, here are some articles on historic trade routes across the Alps.
http://on-historic-routes.com/featured-routes/historic-routes-across-the-alps/
https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1761/the-eastern-trade-network-of-ancient-rome/
https://www.strabag.com/databases/internet/_public/files30.nsf/SearchView/E071BD0996FACDBCC12586F5001E1853/$File/Berge%20die%20es%20zu%20versetzen%20gilt_EN.pdf
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Are we both interested in archeology? The questions you pose are so perfect. But those artifacts seem to be each from a different era. The sword and the knives and the pistol. Maybe artifacts from different times in history from many different falls. Very interesting. Thought-provoking.
why now