Location: Benguet
Kabayan mummies are named after their location in
the municipality of Kabayan, Benguet Province, Philippines. Kabayan
is considered a center of Ibaloi culture, whose traces can be traced
back far into the pre-colonial era. A sociological peculiarity of
the historical Ibaloi culture is the mummification of selected and
socially important dignitaries.
The mummification practiced
by the Ibaloi was an active method of creating mummies. This method
is called fire mummification. Shortly before the person's death,
preparations for mummification were initiated by giving the person
affected drinks that were high in salt and alkali. After death, the
deceased was positioned in a sitting position over a fire of low to
medium intensity until the body was completely dehydrated by the
heat treatment. This process could take up to two years. At the end
of the treatment, the old layers of skin were removed and the body
was embalmed with plant extracts, and the body was also subjected to
intensive tobacco smoke treatment. This type of mummification was
carried out from the 10th century until it was banned by Spanish
invaders in the 16th century and is considered the second example in
the world (after the Dani mummies) of active mummification of the
dead, carried out using a different technique than mummification in
ancient Egypt.
The mummies were then buried in wooden
coffins, which were laid out in man-made and natural caves. These
caves are considered sacred ground to the Ibaloi and are located
near Mount Pulag National Park. The burial sites of the Kabayan
mummies have been on the Philippines' list of proposals for
inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2006 and are
considered National Heritage of the Philippines.
The first
Ibaloi mummies had already found their way into European private
collections around 1900. In 1972, loggers uncovered some burial
caves. To preserve their tradition, the Ibaloi showed thirty of
their mummies to the world in 2000. However, Ibaloi representatives
objected to any damage caused by laboratory tests.
"...The Ibaloi tribe, which has existed in Benguet province for
thousands of years, practiced embalming rituals also found in New Guinea
and similar to those of Egypt's 21st Dynasty. Members of the Dying tribe
drank salty mixtures to begin the process. After death, their bodies
were cleansed, rubbed with herbs and warmed, while their mouths were
filled with smoke. These steps were carried out continuously over a
period of weeks; before the position of the fetus of the deceased, were
placed in oval-shaped wooden coffins, with decorative carvings..."
World Monuments Fund: