A Titicaca bundle mummy and an Atacameno mummy in the colection of the National Museum at Rio the Janeiro

Abstract

At the beginning of the last century, scientific missions visited neighboring countries. These missions resulted in the exchange of archaeological and ethnographical collections, and improved the National Museum exhibitions of Peruvian and Chilean materials. A well preserved bundle was excavated from a chullpa, or stone tomb of the Titicaca Lake region. It is one of the best preserved mummies in our collection. Inside a specially coiled basket is a man sitting exhibiting annular skull defformation and interesting dental decay, possibly associated with coca chewing. Another very well preserved body with genitals comes from an Atacameño burial. A wool cap identifies his cultural affiliation. This second man was unearthed in a tomb in Chiu-Chiu, north of the Atacama desert in Chile, and shows signs of trauma in the face. A comparision of the different conditions that helped preserve the two mummies and their cultural and biological characteristics will be presented here.