Who was Peter the Wild Boy?

In the summer of 1725, a curious figure was discovered wandering naked in a forest near Hamelin, in what is now northern Germany.

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He could not speak, seemed indifferent to the elements, and survived on woodland flora. Captured and taken into care, he quickly became an object of fascination: a living enigma who would soon be known across Europe as 'Peter the Wild Boy'.

Transported to Britain under the patronage of King George I, Peter was exhibited at court as both a marvel and a mystery.

Courtiers and scholars alike speculated about his origins.

Was he a 'noble savage', untouched by civilisation? A relic of humanity's primitive past? Or was he, as some suggested at the time, even a different species?