Authors: Charlier Philippe
We present here a complete forensic procedure for the analysis of shrunken heads from the Jivaro or Shuar tribes of South America (tsantsa). This methodology is based on the examination of pieces referred to our forensic laboratory for anthropological expertise, and data from both anthropological and medical literature.
A list of 14 original morphological criteria has been developed, based on the global aspect, color, physical deformation, anatomical details, and eventual associated material (wood, vegetal fibers, sand, charcoals, etc.). Such criteria have been tested on a control sample of 20 tsantsa. Further complementary analyses are described such as CT-scan and microscopic examination.
