Mummy of Jiwika

The mummy is the preserved remains of Win motok Mabel, the founder and 1st chief of this region. I'm told that it's more than 370 years old. Mummification is not routinely done in this culture. In fact, there are only 4 such mummies in West Papua. The only people mummified are important people in the tribes history, heros in war etc. They are preserved as reminders of their role model lives.
The method of mummification used here is different, too. It seems they coated the body with pig oil and then smoked the body dry for at least 200 days. This accounts for the black color.
The young man holding the mummy is a descendant of the mummified chief.Read more