The Use of Human Skeletal Remains in Palo Rituals in Orange County, Florida

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the use of human bones in Palo rituals through multiple forensic anthropology case studies from Orange County, Florida. The ritual use of human and nonhuman skeletal remains may be misinterpreted when skeletal remains are discovered out of context. The palero harnesses the nfumbe and places them inside of the nganga, along with objects endowed with the spiritual power of Nsambi to draw power. The nganga is of interest to the forensic anthropologist, as this is the vessel in which the palero traps and controls the nfumbe through the use of human skeletal remains. Human skeletal remains are commonly procured from a cemetery, but may also be obtained from a botanica. The secondary locations of the discarded ngangas for the cases presented are consistent with common depositional contexts of other reported cases such as near water, buried or deposited in yards, and associated with wooded areas.