Differences in Chinchorro Mortuary Practices: Evidence Against Status Differentiation

The People    

The Chinchorro were an ancient group of people that inhabited the coasts of what are now southern Peru and northern Chile in South America, an area spanning nearly 900 kilometers (fig. 1). These people consisted of coastal fishing societies that were preceramic and premetallurgy that lasted from 7000 BC until 1500 BC. Perhaps most interesting about the Chinchorro culture is the way in which they treated their dead. Several types of mummification were utilized by these people and vary from one another in very distinctive ways. However, unlike many other cultures that use mortuary practices to distinguish class among individuals, the Chinchorro mummified their dead without status in mind. As we will see the Chinchorro gave equal importance to each style and the use of a single technique at different times shows how the dead were not separated.

Fig. 1. The Chinchorro spanned from Ilo in southern Peru to Antofagasta in Chile.

Long before the ancient Egyptians began practicing mummification, nearly two thousand years earlier in fact, the Chinchorro of South America began what is known to be the earliest form of artificial mummification in the world. The earliest mummies of this practice date as early as 5860 BC and start to show a decline by 1720 BC, a period lasting over 4000 years (Allison et al., 1984: 163-165). However, we find that the act of natural mummification was in effect long before artificial mummification occurred, the earliest dating to 7020 BC (Arriaza, 1995: 126). It is also important to distinguish between the different types of mummification practiced by the Chinchorro. As just noted there are two initial categories for the mummies that are found: natural and artificial.

The Practice

Natural mummification occurs when the deceased are left exposed to the elements with no other treatment or reinforcements given to them. This process depends mostly on the environment, and a hot and dry climate such as the Atacama Desert results in “high salt concentrations in the soils…[that] act as natural preservatives by absorbing body fluids and discouraging microbial attack” (Arriaza, 1995: 3). These mummies are mostly found buried in extended positions like planks of wood lying on the ground and covered in mats made from reeds or the furs of local camelids (Arriaza, 1995: 97). This type of mummification is what one would expect to find when disposing of the dead, specifically individuals of lesser status than elites.

Artificial mummification varies greatly from natural mummification and recently was expanded to include several sub-types within it. An artificial mummy is one that is atypical in the sense that the body is altered by human hands using a variety of tools before being buried (fig. 2). The task of preparing the body typically involves more work to be done in processing it and may even be considered taboo by others. Naturally one would think this more complex treatment of the dead would denote high status among that individual, whereas natural mummification would be reserved for those of lesser status. However, over half of the mummies recovered to date are the artificial types (Cockburn et al., 1998: 158). Typically we would expect to find a higher degree of natural mummification opposed to artificial mummification if the latter indicated status.

Fig. 2. Some of the tools utilized by the Chinchorro for mummification including: bird bone tubs, polishers, and mortar and pestle.

Epochs and Mummies

In his 1919 article The Archaeology of Arica and Tacna, Uhle describes three distinctive types of mummification for the Chinchorro: simple treatment, complex treatment, and mud-coated treatment (Uhle, 1919: 1-48). Though rather dated, these classification types have proved valid through time and continue to be in place to this day. The only exception is that, as previously noted, artificial mummification has been expanded to include black, red, and bandage styles of mummification (Arriaza, 1995: 95). The changes from one type, such as black or red, into a different type can be seen over time. Each method, however, involved much more labor in processing the body opposed to natural mummification (fig. 3).

Fig. 3. Artificial mummy types from black to bandaged, then red to mud-coated.

            Each style of mummy associated with the Chinchorro is separated by different eras with very little overlap. Arriaza distinguishes these time periods as epochs (fig. 4) that stretch the entirety of the known Chinchorro existence (Arriaza, 1995: 125). Over time we see one mummification style replacing another until there is eventually a return to natural mummification. During the first time period, considered to be the Chinchorro Founder epoch, the deceased were “wrapped in a reed sleeping mat or shroud and buried in an extended position” (Arriaza, 1995: 126). This practice within this particular era lasted from 7020 BC to 5050 BC when it was ultimately replaced by more complex mummifications. This type of burial required minimal effort from the living and differences among individuals, including materials used and grave goods, are nearly non-existent. During this time there are no indicators of status among the Chinchorro as each person was treated the same way in death.

 

Fig. 4. Timeline showing which mummy practices were in use and when.

            The Initial Chinchorro epoch was the beginning of artificial mummification and lasted from 5050 BC until 4980 BC. At this time the Chinchorro were beginning to craft the deceased into doll-like beings by only manipulating the face before burying the individual. Evidence shows that during this epoch the practice of mummification was reserved solely for children, and not adults, with the earliest being from Camarones in Chile. This may have been a way for the community to deal with the grief from losing a child, as funerary practices are often utilized to memorialize the dead (Arriaza, 2005: 670). There is no other evidence indicating the potential status of these children.

By the time the Classic Chinchorro began, people were already practicing artificial mummification, but it was during this time that the Chinchorro experimented with processing the entire body. From 4980 BC to 2800 BC the Chinchorro crafted what is now known as the black mummy technique (fig. 5), which was the most complex and labor intensive process that involved decapitation, desiccation, and required the removal of bodily organs. The body was then reinforced with sticks, twine, grass, and other natural materials before putting it all back together. The body of the deceased in this case is “literally disassembled and reconstructed” (Arriaza, 1995: 99), involving the greatest amount of time and energy provided to an individual. Once the individual has been put back together they are coated with a black manganese substance and given a molded clay mask. Uhle also encountered several of these mummies from the site of Arica, in which he noted the use of the technique among all individuals, from children to adults (Uhle, 1919: 4-9). Mummies during this time period varied from each other but not enough to distinguish them as separate types of mummies. Differences in bindings or materials used are apparent with several mummies but overall each person maintained the same technique.

Fig. 5. An example of a Chinchorro mummy with the black technique.

            Next was the Transitional Chinchorro epoch which lasted for about 900 years, from 2620 BC to 1720 BC. This is the first time in nearly 4500 years of mummification that we see multiple styles being used at the same time; both the red and mud-coated styles. Few mud-coated mummies have been dated but those that have date to the beginning and end of the transitional period, but not in-between. This style is rather simple when compared to the others and only involved smoking the body before covering it with mud or paste, which sealed the body to prevent decomposition. No other efforts were made to reinforce the body or preserve it. The red mummy technique is one that closely resembles that of the black mummy but lacked the same level of intensive care; mainly the entire body was not disassembled during processing. Similar to the black mummy, the red mummy had the body cut open for the removal of organs, the head was removed in order to replace the cavity with natural materials, and limbs were reinforced with sticks. After processing the body was also covered in a black manganese paste and given a clay mask, which was later painted red.

            The final epoch is known as the Late Chinchorro, which lasted from 1720 BC to the decline of the Chinchorro around 1110 BC. At this time we see a return of the natural mummification and complete abandonment of artificial mummification. There are no indicators of unrest which would correspond with the end of complex mummy techniques if they had been used for solely elite individuals. Rather we see a continued decline of complex treatment in favor of a simpler process which is possibly linked to an increased awareness of health hazards along with a change in beliefs.

Conclusions

If the Chinchorro were using different styles of mummification to represent social status, we would not see a return to simple techniques. Furthermore, we would not have seen a decrease in complexity but rather the continuation of black mummies with the introduction of simpler forms such as the red and mud-coated mummies. Throughout this entire process, from the introduction of natural mummification to the cessation of artificial mummification, we would expect to find continued use of the natural, simpler forms. Arriaza points out that it is possible the Chinchorro disposed of low status individuals by way of throwing them into the ocean, but only if it were believed the Chinchorro distinguished status (Arriaza, 1995: 134-135). However, it is highly unlikely that this would have even been the case as the body would need to be towed a certain distance offshore in order to keep it from washing up. If this were to happen then the Chinchorro likely would have viewed their source of food as being contaminated, since many cultures connect disease with death.

Arriaza states that “funerary practices are not a random phenomenon; on the contrary, they are determined, among the variables, by traditions, responsibilities toward the dead, the social position of the deceased, the social structure of the population, and beliefs about an afterlife” (Arriaza, 2005: 670). In that statement Arriaza points out that the social position of an individual is important, but it seems to be the contrary with the Chinchorro. In summation, the Chinchorro likely practiced mummification because of their beliefs in the afterlife. The first artificial technique was complex and likely took a great amount of time and effort to construct. In an effort to reduce the work involved but still venerate the dead the Chinchorro decreased their efforts over time. Due to the lack of overlapping styles and minimal grave goods, it is unlikely that mummification was used as a means of showing status. Finally, the only major difference we find between the different types of mummies is that children appear more frequently than adults. However, this is likely due to a high level of infant mortality which would explain the abundance of child bodies.

Works Cited

Allison, M., G. Focacci, B. Arriaza, V. Standen, M. Rivera, J. Lowenstein (1984). Chinchorro Momias de Preparación Complicada: Métodos de Momificación. Changará 13, 155-173.

Arriaza, B. T. (1995). Beyond Death: The Chinchorro Mummies of Ancient Chile. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press.

Arriaza, B. T., Doubrava, M., Standen, V. G., Haas, H. (2005). Differential Mortuary Treatment among the Andean Chinchorro Fishers: Social Inequalities or In Situ Regional Cultural Evolution? Current Anthropology, 46 (4), 662-671.

Cockburn, A., Cockburn, E., Reyman, T. A. (1998). Mummies, Disease & Ancient Cultures. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Uhle, M. (1919). La Arqueología de Arica y Tacna. Boletín de la Sociedad Ecuatoriana de Estudios Históricos Americanos, 3 (7-8), 1-48.