Johan Reinhard has spent years exploring the snow-topped Andes Mountains of South America, searching for ancient ruins. In 1995 he made news around the world by discovering the "Ice Maiden," a 500-year-old mummy of an Incan girl. Last week he announced an even bigger discovery.
Some 22,000 feet up Argentina's Mount Llullaillaco (Yu-yie-yak-oh), Reinhard and his team of American, Argentine and Peruvian scientists found three frozen mummies in almost perfect condition. The two girls and one boy, estimated to have been between 8 and 15 years old when they died, were discovered under five feet of dry rock and earth. A worker had to be lowered into a hole by his ankles to pull up one mummy.
Though one of the mummies had been struck by lightning, all three appear to be the best-preserved bodies from the civilization of the Incas. "They are very lifelike," said Reinhard. "The arms look perfect, even down to the peach-fuzz hair."
Frozen In Time
The Incan empire stretched more than 2,500 miles over western South America. It crumbled after Spain conquered the territory in the 1530s.
Scientists believe that the children were sacrificed to the Incas' gods. The mummies were wrapped in beautifully woven fabrics. Gold, silver and shell statues; moccasins; and pottery were also found at the burial site.
"Almost all of the statues are in a state of perfect preservation, including lids on the pottery and even food offerings of meat jerky," said Reinhard.
Many mummies are discovered freeze-dried by cold, dry weather conditions; they do not contain any soft tissue or blood. But these bodies were simply frozen, so they still have frozen blood in their heart and lungs. Researchers plan to study the mummies' blood and organs carefully. "Questions of health, diet, and questions about ritual sacrifice could be answered," says archaeologist Craig Morris. Studies of their genes may reveal the origins of the Incan people as well as which other groups they are related to.
The three mummies are being kept at a university in Salta, Argentina. One is expected to be sent to the U.S. for testing. What secrets of the Incas have been buried with these mummies for 500 years? The scientists can't wait to find out.