Ancient Child Sacrifice Found Perfectly Preserved In Ice Is Fascinating

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Part of the morbid allure of mummies lies in their surreal out-of-time physicality. Mummies from around the world offer people a glimpse into the literal, tangible past, bringing history to life in a way no written chronicle can. And when it comes to making ancient life seem real, few human relics can match the impact of the Inca mummy girl Juanita.

Mummy Juanita – also known as Juanita the Ice Maiden – was discovered in the Andes in 1995. Uncannily well-preserved (even her organs and the contents of her stomach were intact) she immediately captivated researchers. She's believed to have been an Inca child sacrifice who was killed to please ... or appease ... the gods around the year 1450. She was a mummy long before she was found ... and centuries before civilization as we know it began to define the foundations of what we call contemporary life. Nevertheless, if it hadn't been for the volcanic eruption that effectively dislodged her resting place, she might never have been discovered at all.

Today, Juanita has been relocated from her icy tomb. She sits on display at the Museum of Andean Sanctuaries in Arequipa, Peru, where she seems to greet visitors from across the centuries.

She Was A Healthy Teen When She Died



The superb condition of Juanita's corpse and the artifacts buried with her reveal fascinating details about her life. Tests indicate that she likely died between 1440 and 1450, and at any point between the ages of 12 and 15. Further studies suggest she was in generally excellent health, with "a good and well-balanced diet," though she had fasted for one day prior to her sacrifice.

Even Juanita's clothes were well preserved. The red tunic she was wearing, as well as her llama skin and alpaca wool shoes, indicate that she likely came from nobility, and that she may have lived in the city of Cuzco.

She Was Killed By Blunt Force Trauma



Blunt force trauma is an ugly way to go. Nevertheless, there were far worse ways to die in the Incan Empire. According to experts, victims were also killed via "strangulation ... asphyxia, or burying the victim alive."

Juanita's official autopsy report determined that she died due to a blow to the head, and mentions the "massive craniocerebral injury" that "destroyed and collapsed" not only the upper and frontal parts of her skull, but also her facial bones.

She Was Likely Drunk And Drugged Before Her Sacrifice



According to historians, the Incas often attempted to alleviate the trauma of imminent sacrifice in a rite known as capacocha. As National Geographic explains it, children were customarily given chicha, a potent alcoholic drink distilled from corn, to "ensure intoxication." They were also sometimes given coca ... the plant used to make cocaine ... to chew, and studies have indicated that Juanita was likely sedated in a similar fashion before her death.

She Was Found Holding Her Umbilical Cord, Which Revealed More About Her Genealogy



Juanita was found holding her umbilical cord, which had likely been saved specifically for the occasion of her sacrifice. The stem cells contained therein revealed a wealth of information about her genealogy, and established (via genome) that she likely hailed from a very rare group of native peoples.

She Was Probably Chosen For Sacrifice Before Birth



According to some experts, many Incan child sacrifices were selected at birth. The "healthiest, strongest, and most attractive child" was generally chosen for the "honor" of slaughter; and candidates who came from nobility, as Juanita likely did, were given special precedence over members of the working class. (This might explain why Juanita's umbilical cord was preserved along with her body: it suggests a fate that was already irrevocably established).

Why Juanita was sacrificed remains a mystery. Scholars believe that her type of ritualistic killing was meant to appease the gods, thereby ensuring rain, good crops, and protection. But the "necessity" of sacrifice could also be be triggered by other major events, like natural disasters or the unexpected deaths of prominent leaders, which were seen as indications of the gods' displeasure.

She's One Of The Best-Preserved Mummies In The World



Juanita is one of the most intact mummies of all time. Unlike the standard desiccated mummy, she was frozen solid, which kept her as lifelike as it's possible for a corpse to be. She has, however, experienced some perhaps inevitable setbacks since her retrieval. In 2006, her skin reportedly began to turn from its "natural beige shade to a darker brown, a sign of trouble," and officials quickly took steps to arrest the problem.

She Was Only Found Because Of A Volcanic Eruption



Juanita might have remained atop Mount Ampato in the Peruvian Andes indefinitely, were it not for a nearby volcanic eruption that caused the peak's snowcap to melt, thereby dislodging her burial site and sending her tumbling down the mountain.

In 1995, anthropologist Johan Reinhard and his assistant, Miguel Zárate, discovered the ragged bundle containing Juanita's remains. Along with her incredibly preserved corpse, they found pottery and miniature sculptures of llamas, which were likely intended to be gifts for the gods it was assumed she'd meet in the afterlife.

She Inspired A Mummy Craze



Juanita's discovery sparked a new wave of interest in mummies and their excavation, and in some cases, the trend was taken up by thieves who attempted to plunder various archaelogical sites illegally. According to the National Endowment for the Humanities:

"Eager for gold and silver statues to sell on the black market, looters pose a constant threat to high-altitude ... sites, which are difficult to protect. Some even use dynamite to blast through the ice, decapitating or disintegrating any mummies below in the process."

There May Be Hundreds Of Sacrificed Children Still Out There



Juanita's sacrifice was far from an isolated incident. On the contrary, historians theorize that there were likely "hundreds of Inca children sacrificed nearly 500 years ago [who remain] entombed in graves of ice atop the western hemisphere's highest peaks."