[Aztlan] Aztlan Digest, Vol 23, Issue 1
Earl Sires
siresew at yahoo.com
Wed Oct 3 09:41:34 CDT 2007
here is an interesting news item on scanning technology....
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7024672.stm
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Today's Topics:
1. Changes at Palenque (Michael J. Fitzpatrick)
2. INCA CHILD SACRIFICEES FATTENED UP (michael ruggeri)
3. Re: INCA CHILD SACRIFICEES FATTENED UP (Carlos)
4. INCA CHILD SACRIFICEES FATTENED UP (David Hixson)
5. ACHIOTE AS AN HALLUCINOGENIC HELPER (michael ruggeri)
6. Re: Changes at Palenque (Elaine Day Schele)
7. Re: Changes at Palenque (Julia C. Miller)
8. Achiote (nhopkins at mailer.fsu.edu)
9. Re: Achiote (David Hixson)
10. achiote (Karen Bassie)
11. Achiote:They may some folks who do not know what achiote is
(Justin Kerr)
12. Re: Changes at Palenque (Elaine Day Schele)
13. Re: Achiote:They may some folks who do not know what achiote
is (David Hixson)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Mon, 1 Oct 2007 11:16:11 -0700
From: "Michael J. Fitzpatrick"
Subject: [Aztlan] Changes at Palenque
To:
Message-ID: <001201c80457$25674590$380a010a at DELLDESKTOP>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Mates,
My wife and I are considering a return trip to Palenque in November or
December. We had a wonderful trip to the region in February 1994 and also
saw Tonina and Yaxchitlan. No one was at the later sites at all, perhaps
not surprisingly as the Zapatista revolution had started just 6 weeks
earlier and the region was awash with nervous Federal troops (who really did
not know what to make of a couple of middle-age American tourists in a
rental car).
I am aware that one can no longer visit Pacal's tomb, but I also recall
reading somewhere (here, perhaps?) that restrictions have also been put into
place preventing visitors from climbing certain structures, etc. Has anyone
been there recently who can describe what the experience is like these days?
Any recommendations on a place to stay? We stayed at the Chan-Kah Ruinas
last trip.
Michael J. Fitzpatrick
152 North Third St., #800
San Jose, CA 95112
(408) 288-8013
Fax (408) 995-0531
Fitzesq at earthlink.net
"There are only two truly infinite things, the universe and stupidity. And I
am unsure about the universe."
- Albert Einstein
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Mon, 1 Oct 2007 17:00:03 -0500
From: michael ruggeri
Subject: [Aztlan] INCA CHILD SACRIFICEES FATTENED UP
To: Aztlan
Message-ID: <3EC5F682-3545-46FF-88E1-FF38DEA2357D at mac.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=WINDOWS-1252; delsp=yes;
format=flowed
From Eurekalert
Public release date: 1-Oct-2007
Contact: Craig Brierley
c.brierley at wellcome.ac.uk
Scientists uncover Inca children's countdown to sacrifice
Hair samples from naturally preserved child mummies discovered at the
world's highest archaeological site in the Andes have provided a
startling insight into the lives of the children chosen for
sacrifice. Researchers funded by the Wellcome Trust used DNA and
stable isotope analysis to show how children as young as 6-years old
were "fattened up" and taken on a pilgrimage to their death.
A team of scientists led by Dr Andrew Wilson at the University of
Bradford analysed hair samples taken from the heads and from small
accompanying bags of four mummies found in the Andes. These included
the 15-year old "Llullaillaco Maiden" and the 7-year old
"Llullaillaco Boy" whose frozen remains were found in 1999 at a
shrine 25m from the summit of Mount Llullaillaco, a 6,739m volcano on
the border of Argentina and Chile. The Maiden, described as a
"perfect mummy" went on display for the first time last month in
Salta, northwest Argentina.
Dr Wilson and colleagues studied DNA and stable light isotopes from
the hair samples to offer insight into the lives of these children.
Unlike samples of bone collagen and dental enamel, which give an
average reading over time, hair growth allows scientists to capture a
unique snapshot at different intervals over time, helping build up a
picture of how the children were prepared for sacrifice over a period
of months. The results are published today in the journal Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA.
"By examining hair samples from these unfortunate children, a
chilling story has started to emerge of how the children were
'fattened up' for sacrifice," says Dr Wilson, a Wellcome Trust
Bioarchaeology Fellow.
It is believed that sons and daughters of local rulers and local
communities were chosen for sacrifice, possibly as a way for the
ruling Incas to use fear to govern their people. Some girls, know as
acllas, were selected from around the age of four and placed under
the guardianship of priestesses; some would later be offered as wives
to local nobles, others consecrated as priestesses and others offered
as human sacrifices.
By analysing stable isotopes found in the hair samples, Dr Wilson and
colleagues were able to see that for much of the time prior to
sacrifice, the children were fed a diet of vegetables such as potato,
suggesting that they came from a peasant background. Stable isotopes
of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and hydrogen from an individual's diet
are deposited in their hair where they can remain unchanged over
thousands of years.
However, in the twelve months prior to sacrifice, the isotopic
evidence shows that the Maiden?s diet changed markedly to one that
was enriched with plants such as maize, considered an "elite" food,
and protein, likely to have come from charki (dried llama meat).
"Given the surprising change in their diets and the symbolic cutting
of their hair, it appears that various events were staged in which
the status of the children was raised" says Dr Wilson. "In effect,
their countdown to sacrifice had begun some considerable time prior
to death."
Changes in the isotopes in the hair sample in the final 3-4 months
suggest that the children then began their pilgrimage to the
mountains, likely from Cuzco, the Inca capital. Whilst scientists
cannot be certain how the children died, it is believed that they
were first given maize beer (chicha) and coca leaves, possibly to
alleviate the symptoms of altitude sickness and also to inure them to
their fate. This theory is supported by evidence of coca metabolites
that the researchers found in the victims' hair, and in particularly
high concentrations in the Maiden's.
"It looks to us as though the children were led up to the summit
shrine in the culmination of a year-long rite, drugged and then left
to succumb to exposure," says co-author Dr Timothy Taylor, also of
the University of Bradford. "Although some may wish to view these
grim deaths within the context of indigenous belief systems, we
should not forget that the Inca were imperialists too, and the
treatment of such peasant children may have served to instil fear and
facilitate social control over remote mountain areas.?
Previous research has shown that Llullaillaco Boy appears to have met
a particularly horrific end. His clothes were covered in vomit and
diarrhoea, features indicative of a state of terror. The vomit was
stained red by the hallucinogenic drug achiote, traces of which were
also found in his stomach and faeces. However, his death was likely
caused by suffocation, his body apparently having been crushed by his
textile wrapping having been drawn so tight that his ribs were
crushed and his pelvis dislocated.
Mike Ruggeri's The Ancient Americas Breaking News
http://web.mac.com/michaelruggeri
Mike Ruggeri's Ancient America and Mesoamerica News and Links
http://community-2.webtv.net/Topiltzin-2091/MIKERUGGERISANCIENT/
index.html
Mike Ruggeri's Andean Archaeology News and Links
http://community-2.webtv.net/Topiltzin-2091/MikeRuggerisAndean/
index.html
------------------------------
Message: 3
Date: Mon, 01 Oct 2007 15:33:16 -0700
From: Carlos
Subject: Re: [Aztlan] INCA CHILD SACRIFICEES FATTENED UP
To: c.brierley at wellcome.ac.uk
Cc: Aztlan
Message-ID: <470175AC.1060608 at earthlink.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252; format=flowed
Achiote an hallucinogen?
carlos
michael ruggeri wrote:
>
> From Eurekalert
> Public release date: 1-Oct-2007
>
>
> Contact: Craig Brierley
> c.brierley at wellcome.ac.uk
>
> Scientists uncover Inca children's countdown to sacrifice
>
>
>
> Hair samples from naturally preserved child mummies discovered at the
> world's highest archaeological site in the Andes have provided a
> startling insight into the lives of the children chosen for sacrifice.
> Researchers funded by the Wellcome Trust used DNA and stable isotope
> analysis to show how children as young as 6-years old were "fattened
> up" and taken on a pilgrimage to their death.
>
> A team of scientists led by Dr Andrew Wilson at the University of
> Bradford analysed hair samples taken from the heads and from small
> accompanying bags of four mummies found in the Andes. These included
> the 15-year old "Llullaillaco Maiden" and the 7-year old "Llullaillaco
> Boy" whose frozen remains were found in 1999 at a shrine 25m from the
> summit of Mount Llullaillaco, a 6,739m volcano on the border of
> Argentina and Chile. The Maiden, described as a "perfect mummy" went
> on display for the first time last month in Salta, northwest Argentina.
>
> Dr Wilson and colleagues studied DNA and stable light isotopes from
> the hair samples to offer insight into the lives of these children.
> Unlike samples of bone collagen and dental enamel, which give an
> average reading over time, hair growth allows scientists to capture a
> unique snapshot at different intervals over time, helping build up a
> picture of how the children were prepared for sacrifice over a period
> of months. The results are published today in the journal Proceedings
> of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA.
>
> "By examining hair samples from these unfortunate children, a chilling
> story has started to emerge of how the children were 'fattened up' for
> sacrifice," says Dr Wilson, a Wellcome Trust Bioarchaeology Fellow.
>
> It is believed that sons and daughters of local rulers and local
> communities were chosen for sacrifice, possibly as a way for the
> ruling Incas to use fear to govern their people. Some girls, know as
> acllas, were selected from around the age of four and placed under the
> guardianship of priestesses; some would later be offered as wives to
> local nobles, others consecrated as priestesses and others offered as
> human sacrifices.
>
> By analysing stable isotopes found in the hair samples, Dr Wilson and
> colleagues were able to see that for much of the time prior to
> sacrifice, the children were fed a diet of vegetables such as potato,
> suggesting that they came from a peasant background. Stable isotopes
> of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and hydrogen from an individual's diet are
> deposited in their hair where they can remain unchanged over thousands
> of years.
>
> However, in the twelve months prior to sacrifice, the isotopic
> evidence shows that the Maiden?s diet changed markedly to one that was
> enriched with plants such as maize, considered an "elite" food, and
> protein, likely to have come from charki (dried llama meat).
>
> "Given the surprising change in their diets and the symbolic cutting
> of their hair, it appears that various events were staged in which the
> status of the children was raised" says Dr Wilson. "In effect, their
> countdown to sacrifice had begun some considerable time prior to death."
>
> Changes in the isotopes in the hair sample in the final 3-4 months
> suggest that the children then began their pilgrimage to the
> mountains, likely from Cuzco, the Inca capital. Whilst scientists
> cannot be certain how the children died, it is believed that they were
> first given maize beer (chicha) and coca leaves, possibly to alleviate
> the symptoms of altitude sickness and also to inure them to their
> fate. This theory is supported by evidence of coca metabolites that
> the researchers found in the victims' hair, and in particularly high
> concentrations in the Maiden's.
>
> "It looks to us as though the children were led up to the summit
> shrine in the culmination of a year-long rite, drugged and then left
> to succumb to exposure," says co-author Dr Timothy Taylor, also of the
> University of Bradford. "Although some may wish to view these grim
> deaths within the context of indigenous belief systems, we should not
> forget that the Inca were imperialists too, and the treatment of such
> peasant children may have served to instil fear and facilitate social
> control over remote mountain areas.?
>
> Previous research has shown that Llullaillaco Boy appears to have met
> a particularly horrific end. His clothes were covered in vomit and
> diarrhoea, features indicative of a state of terror. The vomit was
> stained red by the hallucinogenic drug achiote, traces of which were
> also found in his stomach and faeces. However, his death was likely
> caused by suffocation, his body apparently having been crushed by his
> textile wrapping having been drawn so tight that his ribs were crushed
> and his pelvis dislocated.
>
>
>
> Mike Ruggeri's The Ancient Americas Breaking News
> http://web.mac.com/michaelruggeri
>
> Mike Ruggeri's Ancient America and Mesoamerica News and Links
> http://community-2.webtv.net/Topiltzin-2091/MIKERUGGERISANCIENT/index.html
>
>
> Mike Ruggeri's Andean Archaeology News and Links
> http://community-2.webtv.net/Topiltzin-2091/MikeRuggerisAndean/index.html
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Aztlan mailing list
> Aztlan at lists.famsi.org
> http://www.famsi.org/mailman/listinfo/aztlan
>
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------------------------------
Message: 4
Date: Mon, 1 Oct 2007 15:43:42 -0700 (PDT)
From: David Hixson
Subject: [Aztlan] INCA CHILD SACRIFICEES FATTENED UP
To: Aztlan at lists.famsi.org
Message-ID: <971755.89607.qm at web37001.mail.mud.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
I agree with Carlos that it seems odd that achiote is
listed as an "hallucinogenic drug". This is a staple
spice in Yucatan, and is available in nearly every
U.S. latino grocery store. It might stain, but I've
never heard of any other side effects from it. Sounds
like a bad summary of what is likely otherwise a good
report. Too bad.
-Dave
____________________________________________________________________________________
Got a little couch potato?
Check out fun summer activities for kids.
http://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=oni_on_mail&p=summer+activities+for+kids&cs=bz
------------------------------
Message: 5
Date: Mon, 1 Oct 2007 19:57:37 -0500
From: michael ruggeri
Subject: [Aztlan] ACHIOTE AS AN HALLUCINOGENIC HELPER
To: Aztlan
Message-ID:
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=WINDOWS-1252; delsp=yes;
format=flowed
Listeros,
After doing research on Achiote as an hallucingenic substance, I
found this direct reference in an article on Caral. And as I tried to
find other direct references, I found sites that described the
addition of Achiote with other substances to make Ayahuasca, a
powerful hallucinogen in the Andes. The Achiote apparently helped the
body purge itself during hallucinogenic rituals thus aiding the process.
Mike Ruggeri
"Much attention was paid to ritual actions, at that for establishing
communication with gods they played the flutes made of condor bones
and different hallucinogenic agents. Achiote was one of these agents.
This plant is still used for the selva aboriginals to dye leather and
make pictures on it. With the help of achiote the ancient shamans
used to fall into a trance. Very often in ancient Caral along with
pounded coca leaves they mixed the powder of cal ? to intensify the
effect. Till now ordinary Indians chew coca leaves mixed with that
powder."
http://www.tiwy.com/pais/peru/caral/eng.phtml
------------------------------
Message: 6
Date: Mon, 1 Oct 2007 23:26:45 -0500
From: "Elaine Day Schele"
Subject: Re: [Aztlan] Changes at Palenque
To: "Michael J. Fitzpatrick" ,
Message-ID: <001601c804ac$713390f0$6401a8c0 at gis>
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
reply-type=original
Hi Michael,
I spent this summer at Palenque and visited the site many times. In regards
to restrictions, tourist are no longer allowed to visit the top of the
Temple Of the Inscriptions, not even from the back entrance and they are not
allowed to walk behind Temple 13 (location of the tomb of the Red Queen),
but of course you can go inside. In addition, Temples 19 and 20 have been
roped off. I know that Temple 19 has collapsed and perhaps Temple 20 also,
thus they are unsafe.
As far as places to stay, I like personally prefer the LaCanada neighborhood
and where Hotel Tulipanes http://www.mayatulipanes.com.mx/ is located, as
well as another hotel called Xibalba. There are also two great restaurants
in the neighborhood, one called the Maya Restaurant and a great fish place
across the street.
Elaine
----- Original Message -----
From: "Michael J. Fitzpatrick"
To:
Sent: Monday, October 01, 2007 1:16 PM
Subject: [Aztlan] Changes at Palenque
> Mates,
> My wife and I are considering a return trip to Palenque in November or
> December. We had a wonderful trip to the region in February 1994 and also
> saw Tonina and Yaxchitlan. No one was at the later sites at all, perhaps
> not surprisingly as the Zapatista revolution had started just 6 weeks
> earlier and the region was awash with nervous Federal troops (who really
> did
> not know what to make of a couple of middle-age American tourists in a
> rental car).
>
> I am aware that one can no longer visit Pacal's tomb, but I also recall
> reading somewhere (here, perhaps?) that restrictions have also been put
> into
> place preventing visitors from climbing certain structures, etc. Has
> anyone
> been there recently who can describe what the experience is like these
> days?
> Any recommendations on a place to stay? We stayed at the Chan-Kah Ruinas
> last trip.
>
> Michael J. Fitzpatrick
> 152 North Third St., #800
> San Jose, CA 95112
> (408) 288-8013
> Fax (408) 995-0531
> Fitzesq at earthlink.net
>
> "There are only two truly infinite things, the universe and stupidity. And
> I
> am unsure about the universe."
> - Albert Einstein
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Aztlan mailing list
> Aztlan at lists.famsi.org
> http://www.famsi.org/mailman/listinfo/aztlan
------------------------------
Message: 7
Date: Mon, 01 Oct 2007 23:49:45 -0600
From: "Julia C. Miller"
Subject: Re: [Aztlan] Changes at Palenque
To: Aztlan
Message-ID: <4701DBF9.2070101 at gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
Just a clarification on Temple 19 and 20 -- the thatch roof on Temple 19
decayed and was removed by the INAH. It was closed off at that time,
pending replacement of the roof. Temple 20 is closed off because it is
close to the INAH excavations in Structure 22. They keep the whole area
roped off even when there are no active excavations going on.
=== message truncated ===
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