Chile's Ancient Mummies Added to UN Heritage List

Chinchorro mummies are displayed in Azapa's San Miguel Museum in Arica city, around 2051 km (1274 miles) north of Santiago, Chile, October 27, 2005. (REUTERS Photo)
Chinchorro mummies are displayed in Azapa's San Miguel Museum in Arica city, around 2051 km (1274 miles) north of Santiago, Chile, October 27, 2005. (REUTERS Photo)
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Chile's Ancient Mummies Added to UN Heritage List

Chinchorro mummies are displayed in Azapa's San Miguel Museum in Arica city, around 2051 km (1274 miles) north of Santiago, Chile, October 27, 2005. (REUTERS Photo)
Chinchorro mummies are displayed in Azapa's San Miguel Museum in Arica city, around 2051 km (1274 miles) north of Santiago, Chile, October 27, 2005. (REUTERS Photo)

Chile's Chinchorro mummies, the oldest in the world to have been purposefully preserved by humans, were added to UNESCO's World Heritage List this week.

The mummies, which were found in the north of Chile at the start of the 20th century, are more than 7,000 years old, meaning they pre-date the Egyptian mummies by two millennia.

The United Nations' cultural organization announced on Twitter that it had added the "settlement and artificial mummification of the Chinchorro culture" to its prestigious list during a virtual meeting chaired by China.

"UNESCO is validating on an international level, through different experts, that the settlements and artificial mummification of the Chinchorro culture has exceptional value, that it has a global importance," Chilean anthropologist Bernardo Arriaza told AFP.

The Chinchorro were fishers and hunter gatherers more than 7,000 years ago in an area where the desert and Pacific Ocean meet in what is today the south of Peru and north of Chile.

So far, more than 300 mummies have been found, including red, black and bandaged ones.

The mummification process consisted of removing the organs, intestines and tissue.

The skin was then ripped off the corpse and the body rebuilt using sticks and animal hair, while a thick head of black hair was sewn onto the scalp.

Finally the mummies were painted red or black using earth, pigments, manganese and iron oxide.

"These bodies are very finely made by specialists. There's a subtlety, a creativity by these first populations," added Arriaza, who is the director of the Chinchorro Center at the Tarapaca University in the city of Arica.

Why the Chichorro culture mummified their dead remains a mystery.

In 2005, Arriaza developed a theory that it could have been linked to high levels of arsenic poisoning in the water that could have produced premature births, miscarriages, underweight children and high infant mortality.

He suggested the mummification was "an emotional response from parents faced with these painful losses, so they painted them, dressed them up and every day this technique became more elaborate."



The Barnacle, Spaniards’ Favorite Christmas Dish, Imperiled by Climate Change

Adriana, 31, buys boxes with barnacles in front of Israel Martinez, an auctioneer, that were caught off the Atlantic coasts of Galicia during an auction ahead of Christmas celebrations in the port of Coruna, Spain December 21, 2024. (Reuters)
Adriana, 31, buys boxes with barnacles in front of Israel Martinez, an auctioneer, that were caught off the Atlantic coasts of Galicia during an auction ahead of Christmas celebrations in the port of Coruna, Spain December 21, 2024. (Reuters)
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The Barnacle, Spaniards’ Favorite Christmas Dish, Imperiled by Climate Change

Adriana, 31, buys boxes with barnacles in front of Israel Martinez, an auctioneer, that were caught off the Atlantic coasts of Galicia during an auction ahead of Christmas celebrations in the port of Coruna, Spain December 21, 2024. (Reuters)
Adriana, 31, buys boxes with barnacles in front of Israel Martinez, an auctioneer, that were caught off the Atlantic coasts of Galicia during an auction ahead of Christmas celebrations in the port of Coruna, Spain December 21, 2024. (Reuters)

On the craggy rocks on northwestern Spain's treacherous Costa da Morte (Death Coast), wetsuit-clad fishermen dodge crashing waves as they pick barnacles, a prized Christmas delicacy facing decline due to climate change and other factors.

Fetching up to 200 euros ($208) per kilogram (2.2 pounds) during the holiday season, the gooseneck barnacle from the Galicia region has long been treasured by Spaniards for both its flavor and difficulty to harvest.

However, the rise in sea temperatures driven by climate change has severely affected barnacle habitats, as they thrive in icy waters. A recent study by the University of Vigo also linked changing wave patterns to lower quality in the shellfish.

Israel Martinez, an auctioneer in the A Coruna fish market, said that there used to be double or triple the number of barnacles just 10 years ago.

Despite state regulations - such as limiting daily harvests to 7 kg per fisherman - illegal fishing has surged due to the barnacles' high value.

Licensed percebeiros, or barnacle pickers, have called for increased policing of the coast to deter poachers.

Their job is classified as a risky profession due to the adverse work conditions.

"The percebeiro trade on the Costa da Morte is dying. This is due to climate change, absurd laws, illegal fishing and a lack of workers," 36-year-old Roberto Vidal, who started out as a percebeiro at 16, told Reuters.

He said there used to be between 100 and 200 percebeiros in his town of Corme. Now, there are around 30.

Fellow percebeiro Serafin Rodriguez said that future generations would be unable to follow in his footsteps due to declining barnacle populations.