This is Roopkund, a small glacial lake located at an altitude of about 5,029 metres in the Indian Himalayas
This is Roopkund, a small glacial lake located at an altitude of about 5,029 metres in the Indian Himalayas. This lake wouldn't be particularly interesting were it not for the skeletons found in the shallows. Roopkund is frozen for most of the year, but when the snow and ice melts, the lake reveals a disturbing sight—skeletal remains belonging to hundreds of individuals, some of which still have flesh. In 1942 a forest ranger rediscovered the skeletons. Initially it was believed that all the remains belonged to a Japanese invasion force. There is also a local legend that tells of a king and his entourage perishing in a hailstorm. It was believed that all the skeletons were deposited in a single event, but carbon dating on the skeletal remains of 38 individuals, 23 males and 15 females, has revealed that some of the skeletons date to between c. AD 700 and 1000, while others date to c. 1800. The earlier individuals who died at Roop Kund had South Asian ancestry, but those of 1800 had...