Inca Human Sacrifices on Misti Volcano (Peru)

Dagmara M Socha,Ruddy Chávez Perea,Johan Reinhard

doi:10.1017/laq.2020.78

Abstract

One of the most impressive examples of an Incacapacochaceremony was discovered during an archaeological expedition to the summit of Misti volcano in 1998. The offerings at the site included several human sacrifices, along with fine ceramics and figurines made from gold, silver, andSpondylussp. shell. One of the two burials appeared to contain the bones of males and the other of females. The sex was established based on the contents of the graves, because the fragile skeletal material had been badly affected by volcanic activity and exact identification was difficult to make in situ. To limit the risk of damage, the bones were excavated together with the surrounding soil and transported in frozen blocks to the Museo Santuarios Andinos of Universidad Católica de Santa María in Arequipa. This material was the object of a bioarchaeological investigation in February and March 2018. The results revealed that at least eight individuals had been buried in the graves. The findings have increased our understanding of the age categories and physical condition of the individuals chosen to be sacrificed during thecapacocharitual.

Highlights

One of the most impressive examples of an Inca capacocha ceremony was discovered during an archaeological expedition to the summit of Misti volcano in 1998
After cleaning the bones from Misti of soil, it was discovered that a total of eight or nine individuals were buried in two tombs (Table 1)
It is the first discovered capacocha to have more than three bodies sacrificed in the same site (Reinhard and Ceruti 2010)

Summary

Introduction

One of the most impressive examples of an Inca capacocha ceremony was discovered during an archaeological expedition to the summit of Misti volcano in 1998. To limit the risk of damage, the bones were excavated together with the surrounding soil and transported in frozen blocks to the Museo Santuarios Andinos of Universidad Católica de Santa María in Arequipa This material was the object of a bioarchaeological investigation in February and March 2018. To help gain greater control over local communities, the Incas determined the hierarchy of the huacas by supporting the maintenance of their priests and shrines with privileges and ritual offerings. To demonstrate these huacas’ connections with the imperial cult, the Incas adapted some of the royal rituals to important local deities, providing them with a high rank and state support. The analysis of the human sacrifices reveals new data about the significance of this ritual and the religious syncretism used by the Incas in the provinces

Methods

Results

Conclusion