The oldest human mummies were slowly smoked 14,000 years ago

Recent archaeological discoveries have revealed that humans were engaging in body preservation through smoking as far back as 14,000 years ago in Southeast Asia, positioning these findings as the oldest known instances of mummification globally.

In a remarkable continuity of tradition, the Dani people of West Papua, Indonesia, utilize a similar smoke-drying process to mummify their deceased relatives, keeping them revered as part of their household. Many of their preserved remains are found in tightly bound, crouching postures.

Evidence of similar “hyper-flexed” remains has been unearthed across regions including Australia, China, the Philippines, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, South Korea, and Japan.

Hsiao-chun Hung, a researcher from the Australian National University in Canberra, noted that during her investigation of ancient skeletons in Vietnam in 2017, she observed parallels between the burial practices being studied and those of the Dani community.

Hung and her team examined 54 hunter-gatherer burials spanning 11 archaeological sites across Southeast Asia, dating from 12,000 to 4000 years ago, focusing primarily on regions in northern Vietnam and southern China to identify signs of smoke exposure in the skeletons.

The analysis uncovered that many remains exhibited noticeable signs of partial burning, yet the degree was insufficient for cremation. Utilizing two sophisticated techniques—X-ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy—researchers assessed multiple bone samples to ascertain exposure to heat and its intensity.

Impressively, over 90% of the 69 skeletal samples did indeed showcase evidence of heat exposure. Further results indicated that the remains had undergone low-heat exposure, suggesting a smoking process that might have lasted for weeks or even months.

Notably, the oldest mummy in their study, discovered in Hang Cho, Vietnam, dates over 11,000 years old. Meanwhile, similarly burned and tightly bound skeletons were identified at the Hang Muoi site, dating as far back as 14,000 years. “We did not conduct X-ray or infrared analysis on this specimen, as its partial burning was evident to the naked eye,” added Hung.

Previously, the title of the oldest known mummies belonged to individuals from northern Chile, around 7000 years ago, and those from ancient Egypt, approximately 4500 years ago.

Hung posits that the data suggests a widespread practice of such burial methods across southern China and Southeast Asia, with roots going back at least 14,000 years, persisting until around 4000 to 3500 years ago when agricultural societies began to prevail.

The hyper-flexed bindings might have facilitated easier transport of the mummified bodies, as Hung points out.

Further ethnographic studies indicate that these mummification practices endured into the late 19th and early 20th centuries in southern Australia. Hung emphasizes, “Our ethnoarchaeological research in the New Guinea Highlands corroborates that some communities continue these traditions even today.”

“Our findings illustrate a unique amalgamation of technique, tradition, culture, and a profound veneration for ancestors that has transcended millennia, linking contemporary traditions with those from the Palaeolithic era,” she states.

Vito Hernandez from Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia, remarks that the study challenges the notion that early mummification practices were exclusively derived from arid regions like Atacama in South America or the Nile Valley. “This emphasizes the significant role tropical climates have played in shaping unique mortuary traditions among early humans, extending to the Far East, and potentially, the Pacific,” he explains.

“By extending the timeline of mummification by at least 5000 years before the Chinchorro culture of South America, these findings underscore Southeast Asia as a pivotal center of cultural innovation, revealing deep-rooted cultural continuities between early Holocene hunter-gatherers in the area and contemporary Indigenous groups in New Guinea and Australia,” comments Hernandez.