Wikipedia

Children of Llullaillaco

The Children of Llullaillaco[1] (Spanish: [(ɟ)ʝuʝajˈʝako] or [ʎuʎajˈʎako]), also known as the Mummies of Llullaillaco, are three Inca child mummies discovered in 1999 by Johan Reinhard, Constanza Ceruti and their archaeological team near the summit of Llullaillaco, a 6,739 m (22,110 ft) stratovolcano[2] on the Argentina–Chile border. The children were sacrificed in an Inca religious ritual that took place around the year 1500. In this ritual, the three children were drugged with coca and alcohol[3] then placed inside a small chamber 1.5 metres (5 ft) beneath the ground, where they were left to die.[4] Archaeologists consider them as being among the best-preserved mummies in the world.[5][6][7]

La doncella ("The maiden"), the oldest of the three mummies of Inca children discovered in 1999 near Llullaillaco

On 20 June 2001, Argentina's National Commission of Museums, Monuments and Historic Places declared the Children of Llullaillaco to be National Historic Property of Argentina.[1] Since 2007 the mummies have been on exhibition in the Museum of High Altitude Archaeology in the Argentine city of Salta.

Discovery

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A view of Llullaillaco

The Children of Llullaillaco were discovered on 16 March 1999 near the summit of Llullaillaco, a 6,739 m (22,110 ft) stratovolcano in the Andes Mountains on the modern border between Argentina and Chile. Their burial site, at an elevation of approximately 6,700 m (22,000 ft), has been described as the highest archaeological site in the world.[5][2]

The discovery was made by archaeologists Johan Reinhard and María Constanza Ceruti during an expedition to the mountain. The children's burial had been covered by approximately 1.5 m (4.9 ft) of earth and rock. Alongside the children were a large collection of grave goods, including gold, silver and shell figurines, finely woven textiles and pottery.[5][8]

The discovery followed several weeks of work at high altitude. After acclimatizing and establishing a series of camps on the mountain, the team reached an elevation of approximately 6,600 m (21,700 ft). There they faced winds exceeding 110 km/h (68 mph), temperatures as low as −40 °C (−40 °F), and a storm that lasted four days.[9]

According to Reinhard, the team was preparing to abandon the search when researchers noticed an artificial layer beneath the surface. Following this evidence led them to the burial chamber and the discovery of the children.[5]

Final days and cause of death

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The Children of Llullaillaco died as part of a capacocha (qhapaq hucha) ceremony, a form of ritual sacrifice practiced in the Inca Empire. Children selected for these ceremonies were often chosen from elite families and taken from their home communities for ritual preparation before being brought to shrines on high mountain summits.[10]

Scientific analyses indicate that the three children underwent months of ritual preparation before their deaths. Hair analysis showed increasing consumption of coca and chicha, a maize beer, during the final months of their lives. The pattern was most pronounced in La Doncella, who consumed substantially greater quantities than the other two children before her death. Her hair contained the highest concentration of coca yet identified in Andean human remains.[11][12]

After ascending Llullaillaco, the children were placed within a small burial chamber near the mountain's summit. Researchers concluded that La Doncella likely died while unconscious or asleep after consuming large quantities of coca and alcohol. Examination of her remains also revealed a bacterial lung infection, although it is unclear whether it contributed to her death.[11]

The exact causes of death of La Niña del Rayo and El Niño remain uncertain. Archaeologist María Constanza Ceruti has suggested that El Niño may have experienced complications related to the extreme altitude, possibly including high-altitude pulmonary edema. Blood found in the oral cavity, in the absence of evidence for trauma, infection or disease, has been cited as supporting this interpretation.[13]

Condition and preservation

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An archaeological site at the top of Llullaillaco

The Children of Llullaillaco remained remarkably well preserved for approximately 500 years after their burial near the summit of Llullaillaco, where cold temperatures and extremely dry conditions slowed decomposition. The mountain lies near the Atacama Desert, the driest non-polar desert on Earth, and the extreme dryness of the air is considered a major factor in their preservation.[14][15]

The children froze before significant dehydration could occur. As a result, their soft tissues, hair and internal organs survived in remarkable condition, and the shrinkage commonly associated with naturally preserved human remains did not occur. When the children were recovered, researchers reported that one of the hearts still contained frozen blood.[16] Archaeologist Johan Reinhard stated that the mummies "appear to be the best preserved Inca mummies ever found", noting that even the arms remained perfectly preserved down to the individual hairs.[5]

The condition of the three children differed slightly. After her burial, La Niña del Rayo was struck by lightning, which damaged part of her face, shoulder and one ear.[5][17][18] Despite this damage, all three children remained exceptionally well preserved.[5][7]

The mummies

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La Doncella on display

Three mummies were found at the Llullaillaco burial site: la Doncella (the maiden), la Niña del Rayo (the lightning girl) and el Niño (the boy). Once at the top of the mountain they had been allowed to fall asleep and then placed in a small tomb 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) underground, where they were left to die.[6][19]

La Doncella

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The oldest mummy, a girl found to be around the age of thirteen, was dubbed la doncella. She has become widely known as the "Maiden of Llullaillaco". She wore a dress with her hair elaborately braided, along with a feather-adorned headdress.[20] She died in her sleep.[8][21][22]

It is believed that La Doncella was an aclla, or Sun Virgin – she was a virgin, chosen and sanctified at around the age of ten years, to live with other girls and women who would become royal wives, priestesses and sacrifices. The practice of ritual sacrifice in Inca society was intended to ensure health, rich harvests and favorable weather.[23]

La Niña del Rayo

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La Niña del Rayo was approximately six years old when she was sacrificed.[21] Her head was lifted high and she was facing south-west. She was wearing a traditional light brown aksu dress and her head, along with part of her body, was wrapped in a thick woolen blanket. In addition, her entire body was wrapped in another blanket, this one embroidered in red and yellow. Her skull appears to have been intentionally elongated.[24]

La Niña del Rayo appears to have been treated less roughly than El Niño but without the care with which la doncella was treated.[4]

El Niño

El Niño

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The body of El Niño, who was between four and five years old when he was sacrificed.[4] He was the only child to be tied up. Lying in the fetal position, he was wearing a gray tunic, a silver bracelet and leather shoes and had been wrapped in a red and brown blanket.[25] The skull of el niño had been slightly elongated, similarly to that of la Niña del Rayo.[24] The hyper-flexed position and ropes may have aided in transporting him to the burial site— explaining why these elements were not present in similar remains. [26]

El Niño was buried with a collection of small objects, some of them depicting finely dressed men driving caravans of llamas. A woolen sling was wrapped around his head; slings were used by men in a ritual activity to launch stones into the lagoons at the end of the dry season to hasten the coming of the rains.[24]

Exhibition and Indigenous perspectives

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Since 2007, the Children of Llullaillaco have been exhibited at the Museum of High Altitude Archaeology in Salta, northwestern Argentina.[27] To help preserve them, the museum developed a climate-controlled display system designed to replicate conditions on Llullaillaco.[27] The exhibition opened after eight years of research and development, during which the children were cared for by the Catholic University of Salta [es].[27][25]

The exhibition has been the subject of debate about Indigenous rights, the treatment of ancestral human remains and the ethics of displaying human bodies in museums.[25] Some Indigenous leaders have argued that the children should have remained on Llullaillaco, the high Andean volcano where they were buried and which they regard as a sacred mountain.[9][28] Rogelio Guanuco, leader of the Indigenous Association of Argentina (AIRA), described the exhibition as "a violation of our loved ones", while Fermín Tolaba, a leader of the Lule people, called for the children's return and criticised the museum's admission fees.[28][25]

Indigenous responses have not been uniform. In 2004, the Third World Congress of the Quechua Language passed a resolution supporting continued research on the Children of Llullaillaco and the sharing of its findings as a means of "recognizing the greatness and the evolution of our ancestors from their origins to the present day".[29]

According to Gabriel Miremont, director of the Museum of High Altitude Archaeology, concerns about maintaining positive relationships with Indigenous communities contributed to a decision not to remove additional mummies from similar high-altitude burial sites in the Andes.[27] Some Indigenous representatives also questioned whether local communities would benefit from the economic activity generated by the exhibition of the children.[30]

See also

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References

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  1. 1 2 "Las tres momias denominadas "Los Niños del Llullaillaco"" (in Spanish). Comisión Nacional de Monumentos, de Lugares y de Bienes Históricos. 2 December 2013. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 28 August 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  2. 1 2 ""Llullaillaco"". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution.
  3. ↑ Handwerk, Brian (29 July 2013). "Inca Child Sacrifice Victims Were Drugged". National Geographic Society. Archived from the original on 18 February 2021. Retrieved 31 August 2017.
  4. 1 2 3 Castro, Joseph (29 July 2013). "Final Moments of Incan Child Mummies' Lives Revealed". Live Science. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Sawyer, Kathy (7 April 1999). "Mummies of Inca Children Unearthed". Washington Post. Archived from the original on 3 August 2017. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  6. 1 2 Alface, Isabel (29 July 2013). "Secret Last Moments of 500-Year-Old Inca Mummified Children Revealed". Nature World News. Archived from the original on 8 August 2017. Retrieved 16 March 2016.
  7. 1 2 Morelle, Rebecca (30 July 2013). "Inca mummies: Child sacrifice victims fed drugs and alcohol". BBC News. Archived from the original on 9 June 2017. Retrieved 16 March 2016.
  8. 1 2 Secretaría de Cultura de Salta Argentina – Origen y Mision. Museo de Arqueología de Alta Montaña de Salta (16 December 2007). Retrieved 2010-12-14. Archived 15 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  9. 1 2 Laens, Ivonne Jeannot (10 September 2012). "Child Mummy Exhibition Generates Controversy in Argentina". Global Press Journal. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  10. ↑ Ceruti, Maria (5 April 2015). "Frozen Mummies from Andean Mountaintop Shrines: Bioarchaeology and Ethnohistory of Inca Human Sacrifice". BioMed Research International. 2015 439428. doi:10.1155/2015/439428. PMC 4543117. PMID 26345378.
  11. 1 2 Wilson, Andrew S.; Brown, Emma L.; Villa, Chiara; Lynnerup, Niels; Healey, Andrew; Ceruti, Maria Constanza; Reinhard, Johan; Previgliano, Carlos H.; Araoz, Facundo Arias; Gonzalez Diez, Josefina; Taylor, Timothy (13 August 2013). "Archaeological, radiological, and biological evidence offer insight into Inca child sacrifice". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 110 (33): 13322–13327. doi:10.1073/pnas.1305117110. PMC 3746857. PMID 23898165.
  12. ↑ Hayden, Erika Check (29 July 2013). "Incan child mummies show evidence of sacrificial rituals". Nature. doi:10.1038/nature.2013.13461. S2CID 211730648.
  13. ↑ Ceruti, Constanza (6 November 2014). "Overview of the Inca Frozen Mummies From Mount Lullaillaco (Argentina)". Journal of Glacial Archaeology. 1: 79–97. doi:10.1558/jga.v1i1.79. hdl:11336/12384.
  14. ↑ Vesilind, Priit J. (August 2003). "The Driest Place on Earth". National Geographic Magazine. Archived from the original on 26 March 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
  15. ↑ Brumble, Melody (15 August 2013). "Researcher helps unwrap mystery of 3 Incan children". USA Today. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  16. ↑ Sawyer, Kathy (7 April 1999). "Mummies of Inca Children Unearthed". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 3 August 2017. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  17. ↑ "Los Niños de Llullaillaco" (in Spanish). Secretaría de Cultura de Salta Argentina. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011.
  18. ↑ Wilson, Andrew S.; Taylor, Timothy; Ceruti, Maria Constanza; Chavez, Jose Antonio; Reinhard, Johan; Grimes, Vaughan; Meier-Augenstein, Wolfram; Cartmell, Larry; Stern, Ben; Richards, Michael P.; Worobey, Michael; Barnes, Ian; Gilbert, M. Thomas P. (16 October 2007). "Stable isotope and DNA evidence for ritual sequences in Inca child sacrifice". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 104 (42): 16456–16461. doi:10.1073/pnas.0704276104. PMC 2034262. PMID 17923675.
  19. ↑ Handwerk, Brian (29 July 2013). "Inca Child Sacrifice Victims Were Drugged". National Geographic. Archived from the original on 1 August 2013. Retrieved 8 August 2017.
  20. ↑ Wilson, Andrew S.; Brown, Emma L.; Villa, Chiara; Lynnerup, Niels; Healey, Andrew; Ceruti, Maria Constanza; Reinhard, Johan; Previgliano, Carlos H.; Araoz, Facundo Arias; Gonzalez Diez, Josefina; Taylor, Timothy (13 August 2013). "Archaeological, radiological, and biological evidence offer insight into Inca child sacrifice". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 110 (33): 13322–13327. Bibcode:2013PNAS..11013322W. doi:10.1073/pnas.1305117110. ISSN 0027-8424. PMC 3746857. PMID 23898165.
  21. 1 2 Milner Halls, Kelly (2007). Mysteries of the Mummy Kids. Darby Creek Pub. pp. 72. ISBN 978-1-58196-059-4.
  22. ↑ Wade, Lizzie (29 July 2013). "'Llullaillaco Maiden' May Have Been Drugged Before Sacrificed". Science Magazine.
  23. ↑ Costin, Cathy Lynne (1998), "Housewives, Chosen Women, Skilled Men: Cloth Production and Social Identity in the Late Prehistoric Andes," Archeological Papers of the American Anthropological Association, vol. 8, No. 1, p. 134.
  24. 1 2 3 "Los Niños de Llullaillaco" (in Spanish). Secretaría de Cultura de Salta Argentina. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 9 August 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  25. 1 2 3 4 Treviño, Marisa (20 March 2012). "Child Mummy Exhibition Generates Controversy in Argentina". Latina Lista. Retrieved 8 August 2017.
  26. ↑ Ceruti, Constanza (6 November 2014). "Overview of the Inca Frozen Mummies From Mount Lullaillaco (Argentina)". Journal of Glacial Archaeology. 1: 79–97. doi:10.1558/jga.v1i1.79. hdl:11336/12384. ISSN 2050-3407.
  27. 1 2 3 4 Grady, Denise (11 September 2011). "In Argentina, a Museum Unveils a Long-Frozen Maiden". New York Times. New York. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
  28. 1 2 Goñi, Uki (21 September 2005). "Protest over child mummies". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  29. ↑ Reinhard, Johan (2005). The Ice Maiden: Inca Mummies, Mountain Gods, and Sacred Sites in the Andes. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society. pp. 337–338.
  30. ↑ Betancourt, Idangel (22 November 2010). "El MAAM: un museo para el cadáver de la ética". Salta Libre (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 28 August 2017.

Bibliography

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  • Reinhard, Johan: The Ice Maiden: Inca Mummies, Mountain Gods, and Sacred Sites in the Andes. National Geographic Society, Washington, D.C., 2005.
  • Reinhard, Johan and Ceruti, María Constanza: "Inca Rituals and Sacred Mountains: A Study of the World's Highest Archaeological Sites" Los Angeles: UCLA, 2010.
  • Reinhard, Johan and Ceruti, María Constanza: Investigaciones arqueológicas en el Volcán Llullaillaco: Complejo ceremonial incaico de alta montaña. Salta: EUCASA, 2000.
  • Reinhard, Johan and Ceruti, María Constanza: "Sacred Mountains, Ceremonial Sites and Human Sacrifice Among the Incas." Archaeoastronomy 19: 1–43, 2006.
  • Ceruti, María Constanza: Llullaillaco: Sacrificios y Ofrendas en un Santuario Inca de Alta Montaña. Salta: EUCASA, 2003.
  • Reinhard, Johan: "Llullaillaco: An Investigation of the World's Highest Archaeological Site." Latin American Indian Literatures Journal 9(1): 31–54, 1993.
  • Beorchia, Antonio: "El cementerio indígena del volcán Llullaillaco." Revista del Centro de Investigaciones Arqueológicas de Alta Montaña 2: 36–42, 1975, San Juan.
  • Previgliano, Carlos, Constanza Ceruti, Johan Reinhard, Facundo Arias, and Josefina Gonzalez: "Radiologic Evaluation of the Llullaillaco Mummies." American Journal of Roentgenology 181: 1473–1479, 2003.
  • Wilson, Andrew; Taylor, Timothy; Ceruti, Constanza; Reinhard, Johan; Chávez, José Antonio; Grimes, Vaughan; Wolfram-Meier-Augenstein; Cartmell, Larry; Stern, Ben; Richards, Michael; Worobey, Michael; Barnes, Ian; Gilbert, Thomas (2007). "Stable isotope and DNA evidence for ritual sequences in Inca child sacrifice". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 104 (42): 16456–16461. Bibcode:2007PNAS..10416456W. doi:10.1073/pnas.0704276104. PMC 2034262. PMID 17923675.
  • Complete description, history, place name and routes of Llullaillaco in Andeshandbook
  • Museum of High Mountain Archaeology (in Spanish)
  • ""Llullaillaco"". SummitPost.org.
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