A photo from open sources
Head of Coca Village, New Guinea Helps members of their clan communicate with the spirits of the dead with the help of a mummy.
The Mummy (a former shaman and warrior named Moimango) for many decades has been the link between the world of the living and the dead. However, in recent years, the body condition of the mummy has deteriorated sharply. To restore the local relic, experts not only conducted necessary body manipulations, but also carefully studied the process smoking tel.
In a small sheltered canopy, which is located in the rock, located high above the village of Koke, mummified are kept the bodies of several deceased members of the Anga clan. The village itself is located in a remote mountainous region of New Guinea whose inhabitants have contact with the outside world only thanks to the ports located on coast.
The clan leader, a man named Gemtasi, decided to improve the remains of his father Moimango, who was mummified in 1950 year. Gemtasi hoped that having restored his father’s body, he also can revive the cultural practice of sooty mummies, over the riddle which scientists fought for decades.
For members of the Anga clan, the mummies of their ancestors play a very important role. Residents believe that mummified bodies not only bring patronage and good luck to their kind, but also able to give valuable advice to solve important problems. A close connection with the world of the dead is for clan members a natural need, because not one triumph in the village is not complete without the participation of deceased ancestors.
Years have not spared Moimang’s mummified body: his jaw was knocked out, and the head was about to fall off. Moreover, the body was chosen by lichens and rodents, which made a nest for themselves inside his stomach. A team was called to restore the mummy professionals from Canada to whom locals revealed some secrets regarding the ritual of smoking bodies.
For the restoration of the head of the mummy as a durable glue was used the juice of a plant called kimaka. To get rid from the defeat of the mummy with lichen, experts used the substance on the basis of lime, which included crushed nuts and other additives. As a result, the chemical composition as well as the effect of this mixture can be compared with bleach.
Scientists admitted that local materials worked surprisingly well, and the result of the work done was just great.
In gratitude for the work done, local residents shared the secret of smoking mummies on the example of a forest pig. Himself The smoking process consists of several parts. Before you place body for 30 days in a hut filled with smoke, the body is washed and thoroughly scrape with special brushes. Then using bamboo the tubes empty the contents of the intestines, and the remaining fluids released from tiny holes made on arms and legs. After which the body is generously lubricated with ocher and clay, in which forms of iron oxide are present. This ointment serves as moisture-proof protective capsule protects against insects and rodents. As a reliable preservative acts arsenic, which is in the smoke that smokes the mummy.
Mummies Plants
