Mummification
Curated by Evelyn
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Curated by Evelyn
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Early South American tribes were starting to mummify bodies as eraly was crica 5000 B.C. Mummifcation was later adopted in the Inca empire for multiple reasons. Accoring to How Inca Mummies Ruled Over the Living (Pruitt); mummification was used as a way of "..honoring their ancestors and preserving the connection between present and past."
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Mummification was used as a way to preseve culture, worship ancestors, and even expand the empire. Due to royal mummmies that were surrounded by wealth and other vaulales there were often robbers. However royals werent the only ones that were mummifed, the inca mummified all the dead.
The Inca empire didnt invent mummifcation but they had adopted it from those that were already practicing it. Compared to Egyptian mummifcation, incan mummification is quite diffrent. Mummies were often placed in the fetal position, wrapped, or placed in baskets or under large ceramic jars.
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When the Spanish arrived in South America, they were unsettled yet fascinated by the incans ritual practices. However the Spanish had still looted their tombs and even vandalizing some of the preserved mummies. Eventually in 1559, the Sapnish decied to take all of the mummies in inca. As archeaologists unearth more mummies we further learn more about the Inca empire. Such as their cultural beliefs, religous practices, and how they treated different social status.