Salango, a place on the coast of central Ecuador grabbed the attention of the archeologists when an ancient gravesite dating at 100BC was discovered. Remains from 11 individuals called Guangala who lived 2,100 years ago were found, but it was the skeletons of two infants among them which caused major shock.
Credits: Sara Juengst
The research team from the Universidad Técnica de Manabí excavated the site between 2014 and 2016. In one mound, archaeologists found the skull of an infant that died at 18 months old, which was buried wearing the skull of a child between 4 and 12 years old. Later on, the team uncovered a more complete skeleton of an infant between 6 and 9 months old. That skull was encased in a skull helmet from a child between 2 and 12 years old.
Could it be a ritual? Various burying rituals were popular among people who lived at the time, but up until then nothing simial has been discovered. This is only known evidence of children’s skulls being used as helmets in a burial ceremony anywhere in the archaeological record. The study authors aren’t sure why the children were buried with this extra headgear, but said it could represent an attempt to protect the infants in the afterlife.
Sara Juengst, the author of a recent study in this discovery, the Guangala hoped this “mortuary headgear” would ensure that these infants had extra protection or extra links to ancestors. This extra protection may have been deemed necessary if the children had died following some sort of natural or social disaster.
Credits: Sara Juengst
While many theories, including that of human sacrifice, have floated around the story, there is one very potential theory regarding the cause of death of the children: The two skull-helmet-clad infants were buried just above a layer of volcanic ash, the researchers reported, which suggests an eruption occurred in nearby highlands prior to their deaths. Juengst thinks the consequences of this volcanic eruption, such as a loss of crops or trouble finding fish, could have triggered disease outbreaks and starvation among the Guangala, therefore cause the death of the children. The analysis done on the skeletons show signs of malnutrition and disease.
The helmets were placed tightly over the infants’ heads, the archaeologists found. It’s likely that the older children’s skulls still had flesh on them when they were turned into helmets, because without flesh, the helmets likely would not have held together, the archaeologists noted.
Sources: Unique Infant Mortuary Ritual at Salango, Ecuador, 100 BC, Business Insider, Live Science
