Overview

In the humid caves and rock shelters of ancient Asia, where hunter-gatherer communities once tended low-burning fires, a remarkable practice emerged that preserved the dead in ways that resonate through millennia. This book looks into the discovery of the oldest known evidence of human mummification, dating back 14,000 years, through smoke-drying techniques employed by pre-Neolithic peoples in regions spanning China, Vietnam, and Indonesia. Drawing on archaeological analyses, it explores how bodies were carefully positioned in extreme squatting postures, exposed to gentle heat to ward off decay in tropical climates, and ultimately laid to rest in communal graves. The book details the scientific path from puzzling skeletal charring to advanced imaging revelations with modern rituals in Papua New Guinea and genetic insights from distant Saharan contexts. Chapters unfold the chronology of these practices, from Paleolithic origins to their persistence amid cultural exchanges, while addressing debates over what truly constitutes mummification-distinguishing intentional preservation from accidental burning. The relationship of these findings to human migration patterns, emotional connections in ancient societies, and the persistent interaction of tradition, environment, and belief influenced early burial practices.

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