In the world of archaeology, there have been many remarkable discoveries that have given us deeper insights into the distant past. One of these extraordinary discoveries is the “Detmold Child” – a child mummy from the pre-Columbian era, perfectly preserved over thousands of years. Found in the Andes highlands of Peru, this mummy has opened new doors for studying the life and death of ancient people.
The “Detmold Child” is named after the museum in Detmold, Germany, where the mummy is currently on display. The child mummy is about 8-10 months old and that dates back an incredible 6,500 years – that’s 3,000 years before the birth of Tutankhamun. . This makes it one of the oldest child mummies ever discovered.
The mummy is well-preserved due to the dry and cold natural conditions of the Andes region, which help prevent bacterial growth and decomposition. When discovered, the mummy was still intact with its skin, hair, and even nails.
The well-preserved infant was discovered with eyes closed, arms folded and legs hunched, a burial pose typical of the region and culture. The child had small, flat, rectangular pendant strung around its neck, believed to be made of bone.
Archaeologists have employed various modern techniques to study the “Detmold Child,” including CT scanning and DNA analysis. CT scans allow researchers to explore the internal structure of the mummy without damaging it. Through this technology, they have uncovered fascinating details about the child, such as its health condition and nutritional status before death.
DNA analysis has also provided valuable information about the child’s origins. The results indicate that the child belonged to an indigenous group from the Andes region and had genetic connections with ancient populations in South America.
Officials at the Lippe State Museum in the German city of Detmold, where the approximately 6,500-year-old mummy is on display, said scientists and heart specialists at the North Rhine Westphalia Heart and Diabetes Centre (HDZ NRW) used a high-resolution CT scanner on it. The results found that the infant was between 8 to 10 months of age at the time of death, and suffered from a very rare congenital heart malformation known as hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), a rare congenital condition in which parts of the left side of the heart do not develop completely. The condition leads to death in early infancy. Nowadays, the survival rate with modern treatment is 70 per cent.
The Delmond Child was also found to have Vitamin D deficiency, a condition known as turricephaly, which leads to an abnormal, conically-shaped skull, and a pulmonary infection caused by tuberculosis or pneumonia, which would have combined with the heart condition to cause the death of the child. The remains of the infant were radio-carbon dated to 4505-4457 BC.
The Detmold Child has recently been returned from a three-year-tour as part of the controversial Mummies of the World exhibition in U.S., which featured more than 150 mummies from across the globe. Questions have been raised over whether it is ethical to put human remains on display to be gawked at by curious visitors, or whether the exhibition serves an important educational purpose.
The “Detmold Child” is not only an important archaeological specimen but also a symbol of the culture and beliefs of ancient people. The preservation of this mummy may be related to religious rituals and beliefs about life after death. The ancient Andean people believed that the soul of the deceased would continue to exist and could influence the living world. Therefore, preserving the mummy may have been part of the preparation for the soul’s journey.
