Is That Shrunken Head Really Human? Combining Imaging Methods Yields Clues

[maximus otter]

Many museums around the world count shrunken heads (known as tsantsas by the Shuar people) among their collections, but how can curators determine if those items are authentic? Certain sophisticated imaging methods can help, according to an August paper published in the journal PLoS One.

The practice of headhunting and making shrunken heads has mostly been documented in northwestern parts of the Amazon rainforest, as well as among certain tribes in Ecuador and Peru, like the Shuar. Accounts conflict on the specific details of the manufacturing process. But the tsantsas were typically created by removing the skin and flesh from the skull's cranium via an incision on the back of the ear, and then discarding the skull. The nostrils were packed with red seeds and the lips sewn shut. Next, the skin was boiled in water saturated with tannin-rich herbs for 15 minutes to two hours, so that the fat and grease would float to the top. This also caused the skin to contract and thicken. Then the head was dried with hot rocks and molded back into something resembling human features and the eyes were sewn shut. As a final touch the skin was rubbed with charcoal ash—apparently to keep the avenging soul from escaping—and sometimes beads, feathers, or other adornments were added for decoration.

Shrunken heads were a popular collectible among Victorian-era priests, Europeans, and American explorers eager to bring exotic things back for their private collections. Eventually a commercial market developed as the practice became more broadly known after 1860. But these commercial tsantsas were often made from animal skins (usually pigs, monkeys, or sloths), although some were made from human heads collected from corpses in morgues. The manufacturers nonetheless claimed their wares were genuine.

Lauren September Poeta and her coauthors estimate that as much as 80 percent of the tsantsas currently kept in collections worldwide are of commercial origin, and there are very few reliable methods capable of determining their true origin. Curators have usually relied on visual inspections or CT scanning for authentication. They decided to see if they could improve the resolution of those features by combining CT scanning with high-resolution micro-CT scanning—an approach known as correlative tomography.

The Chatham tsantsa

The team used a tsantsa from the collection of the Chatham-Kent Museum in Chatham, Ontario, acquired by the museum in the 1940s from a local family who bought it while exploring the Amazonian basin. The only note of origin was that it came from "Peruvian Indians," and there was no definitive proof that the Chatham tsantsa was the genuine article. The researchers did a clinical CT scan of the entire object and two micro-CT scans—one of the whole head, the other a high-resolution scan of part of the scalp—using a machine at the Museum of Ontario Archaeology.

Poeta and her colleagues confirmed that the Chatham tsantsa is made of genuine human remains, although they could not determine whether it was made ceremonially or commercially. The rough cut at the back of the skull and the use of double-hiding are consistent with the former, but modern thread was used to stitch the incision, eyes, and lips, which suggests commercial production.

https://arstechnica.com/science/202...tter-tools-for-authenticating-shrunken-heads/

maximus otter

 

[Mikefule]

Very interesting. Thanks for posting.

I am a Morris dancer. Morris dancing is a traditional English form of ritual/display dance. One of the national associations of Morris dance clubs is the Morris Ring.

Every club/team ("side") that is a member of the Morris Ring is given a staff of office, and the leader of the side (the Squire) carries this on certain formal occasions. Some sides add decorative ferules and sometimes badges or plaques to their staff of office.

Many years ago (1980s?) I saw a staff of office that had a shrunken head attached to the top. I saw it only briefly and did not have chance to examine it, but I remember it looked convincing and creepy. It was not a perfectly formed miniature head, but somewhat distorted, and with a tangle of wild hair.

I believe that it was "widely spoken of" in the Morris world for a short period. Then quiet but firm words were spoken about the public image of the Morris, and respect for other cultures, etc., and the shrunken head was removed from the staff. I do not know the full details.

It is amusing, all these years later, to learn that there was about an 80% chance it was a commercially-produced souvenir, and a good chance it was not actually human.

 

[Kondoru]

Thank you, This is something I worry about constantly; the authenticity of my head.

(But seriously, its a good museology study and probably has relevance to all sorts of things).

 

[Mikefule]

I am a Morris dancer. Morris dancing is a traditional English form of ritual/display dance. One of the national associations of Morris dance clubs is the Morris Ring.
...
Many years ago (1980s?) I saw a staff of office that had a shrunken head attached to the top. I saw it only briefly and did not have chance to examine it, but I remember it looked convincing and creepy. It was not a perfectly formed miniature head, but somewhat distorted, and with a tangle of wild hair.
....

It is amusing, all these years later, to learn that there was about an 80% chance it was a commercially-produced souvenir, and a good chance it was not actually human.

I have made a few inquiries. The head was given to a member of Derby Morris Men (a modern revival side in Derby, east midlands of England) when he worked in Brazil. He was told it was authentic although later inquiries have revealed that it is not.

The bit about it being removed from the staff after stern advice from above was incorrect. It remained on the staff until the side folded in the late 1990s. The late owner's son, also a Morris dancer, still has the "head" (it is not authentic after all) but says it is not in good condition.