Yesterday, on March 22, 2023, in Current Biology a study was presented by a group of scientists. During their project they had analyzed eight different locks of hair that are known to come from the famous composer.
The eight locks of hair
For the study eight different locks were involved coming from public and private collections. These locks are referred to as the Muller, Bermann, Halm-Thayer, Moscheles, Stumpff, Cramolini-Brown, Hiller, and Kessler locks.
The locks were cut approximately at the same period of his life, around 1821 and 1827. The only exception here is the Kessler sample, as these were cut 36 or 61 years after the composer’s death, during the body’s exhumation (Beethoven’s remains were moved more times).
From the eight locks five are perfect genetic matches, and as such should be considered authentic. Two locks, the Cramolini-Brown and Hiller, were not matching with the rest, one of them (Hiller) is coming from a woman. In case of the Kessler locks they were not able to provide conclusive result.
|Related: Famous Beethoven hair locks
Beethoven’s ancestry proved
The ongoing debate and speculation about Beethoven having African roots is now over. The study presents the facts that Beethoven’s genome placed him among Europeans, clustering with modern Germans. In other words, Beethoven’s ancestry was >99% European.
The study also verified the biography of Beethoven having his family from and around Bonn, and the Rhine Country. Strong geographic clustering puts him along the Rhine River and within present-day North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany.
Findings of the research
Probably the most interesting area was the possible explanation for Beethoven’s hearing loss. Over the years many diseases were accounted for his deafness, like Paget’s disease of bone, otosclerosis, sarcoidosis, complications from Crohn disease or ulcerative colitis. Researchers, at the end, could not reliably identify the source of his hearing loss.
They did find evidence of predisposition for liver disease. This, combined with Beethoven’s known acquaintance with wine, could explain some of his health problems in his final years. The testing also proved that during the weeks prior to his death he had hepatitis B infection.
The study could not shed light on Beethoven’s other gastrointestinal problems, from which he had many, even from his young age.
(Feature image from: IRA F. BRILLIANT CENTER FOR BEETHOVEN STUDIES/SAN JOSE STATE UNIV.)
