I found a cool article in National Geographic from October 2012 about Sky Cave burials in the Kingdom of Mustang in Nepal. Some of these burials are located approximately 155 feet above a valley floor on a sheer rock face. These series of caves are empty and estimated to be around 800 years old. One that stood out was Tomb 5 in the Samdzong region near the Plateau of Tibet. It contained skeletal remains of one individual wearing a funerary mask placed in a painted coffin box along with a bronze mirror and iron daggers, copper vessel, iron tripod, wood and bamboo cups. There was a child skeleton laid out on the floor next to 3 horse and 2 goat sacrificed skulls information about the child is not known. This burial is the remaining one of 3 that collapsed with Tomb 5 the only surviving tomb. The remains are thought to be of those of a high ranking local leader from around 1300-1800 years ago. The funerary box/coffin was very well constructed as one of the author's Eng points out " Like IKEA before IKEA."
Interestingly in the Kingdom of Mustang in Nepal in 1995 an infant and "adult female foot" were among 30 naturally occurring mummies found. These were located in a cliff cave burial and discovered by a German and Nepalese team of archaeologist. These burials are approximately 2000 years old and I have difficulty with the statement of a " female foot" just on the assumption that the foot was placed in the same area as the infant.
These burials are very interesting in the fact that some 2000 years ago people had to get these remains and all the funerary grave goods up these cliffs after having to dug them out of the cliff face. How they did that back then without all the crazy climbing equipment that is available today is beyond me.
Monday, 1 April 2013
Tuesday, 19 March 2013
The Weird and the Weirder Deaths
I was scrolling the internet and found some weird and wonderful deaths that I want to share. There are hundreds of these fables whether these are all true or not should be left up to the reader to either believe the internet or go out into the digital world and research for oneself. I however love a great story of how someone died in a weird and sometimes moronic way. Here we go.
The year was 892 and a fellow by the name Sigurd Eysteinsson or as he was better know as "Sigurd the Mighty" was merrily ruling as the second Viking Earl of Orkney have succeeded his brother Rognvald Eysteinsson He was hell bent on leading the Viking conquest into what is now Northern Scotland. His mortal enemy Mael Brigte was killed and decapitated at sometime during this campaign and our friend Sigurd the Mighty strapped Mael's decapitated head to his horses saddle as a trophy. Well even though Mael's head had been separated from his body he was not finished the fight these two had started. As the story goes the teeth of Mael scratched Sigurd's leg as he triumphantly rode through the North of Scotland and caused a massive infection in his leg that he later succumbed to. Bite can be worse than the bark.
4 BC The reign of Herod the Great in Roman Judea in modern day Israel and State of Palestine. There is debate on the accurateness of the title " the Great" as many historians believe he was a crazy person who murdered his family and many religious figures in his time but that is not what I care about. I care how this dude died. There is a very technical paper of the highly possible reasons for Herod's demise by Dr. Litchfiel but I prefer the more crude and vial one from the internet. It states that Herod suffered and died of fever, intense rashes, colon pains, foot drop, inflammation of the abdomen, a putrefaction of his genitals that produced worms, convulsions, and difficulty breathing before he finally died. This was all to have been happening at around the same time.
And I get a little crazy if my cold lasts for more than 3-4 days. Well those are but two that I found and have had time to write about. There may well be a part two to this in the near future.
Ma halo for reading
The year was 892 and a fellow by the name Sigurd Eysteinsson or as he was better know as "Sigurd the Mighty" was merrily ruling as the second Viking Earl of Orkney have succeeded his brother Rognvald Eysteinsson He was hell bent on leading the Viking conquest into what is now Northern Scotland. His mortal enemy Mael Brigte was killed and decapitated at sometime during this campaign and our friend Sigurd the Mighty strapped Mael's decapitated head to his horses saddle as a trophy. Well even though Mael's head had been separated from his body he was not finished the fight these two had started. As the story goes the teeth of Mael scratched Sigurd's leg as he triumphantly rode through the North of Scotland and caused a massive infection in his leg that he later succumbed to. Bite can be worse than the bark.
4 BC The reign of Herod the Great in Roman Judea in modern day Israel and State of Palestine. There is debate on the accurateness of the title " the Great" as many historians believe he was a crazy person who murdered his family and many religious figures in his time but that is not what I care about. I care how this dude died. There is a very technical paper of the highly possible reasons for Herod's demise by Dr. Litchfiel but I prefer the more crude and vial one from the internet. It states that Herod suffered and died of fever, intense rashes, colon pains, foot drop, inflammation of the abdomen, a putrefaction of his genitals that produced worms, convulsions, and difficulty breathing before he finally died. This was all to have been happening at around the same time.
And I get a little crazy if my cold lasts for more than 3-4 days. Well those are but two that I found and have had time to write about. There may well be a part two to this in the near future.
Ma halo for reading
Friday, 22 February 2013
To the Bishop and Beyond:::: Hawaiian style
Well I do have to leave the island Oahu tomorrow and head back to school ....but I have had a great time here as always and as this is my second home I will return.
Yesterday I went to the Bishop Museum and had the amazing opportunity to hang out with Dr. Yosihjko Sinoto: who is the senior anthropologist at the Bishop Museum.
Dr.Sinoto mentored under the renowned archaeologist/anthropologist Dr. K. Emory whom he spoke to me about with revere and sincerity. Dr. Sinoto was one of the most entertaining and informative personalities I ever have encountered.Dr.Sinoto is in his late 80's but as we chatted he was back slapin me and laughing as he spoke of his research in the early 60's in the South Pacific. Dr.Sinoto was very interested in my research and was very enthusiastic about answering my questions about my research proposal. Dr. Sinoto is just an amazing person.
Again was an amazing opportunity in my life to have met a living legend in the archaeology field.
Ma Halo for reading
Well I do have to leave the island Oahu tomorrow and head back to school ....but I have had a great time here as always and as this is my second home I will return.
Yesterday I went to the Bishop Museum and had the amazing opportunity to hang out with Dr. Yosihjko Sinoto: who is the senior anthropologist at the Bishop Museum.
Dr.Sinoto mentored under the renowned archaeologist/anthropologist Dr. K. Emory whom he spoke to me about with revere and sincerity. Dr. Sinoto was one of the most entertaining and informative personalities I ever have encountered.Dr.Sinoto is in his late 80's but as we chatted he was back slapin me and laughing as he spoke of his research in the early 60's in the South Pacific. Dr.Sinoto was very interested in my research and was very enthusiastic about answering my questions about my research proposal. Dr. Sinoto is just an amazing person.
Again was an amazing opportunity in my life to have met a living legend in the archaeology field.
Ma Halo for reading
Wednesday, 20 February 2013
Aloha from the Island of Oahu.....
Well I have had an adventuresome time this afternoon...in the fact that I had the amazing opportunity to visit with the director of the Forensic Science Academy at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu. Dr. Robert Mann is the overseer of the forensic identification part of the JPAC/CIL or the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command and Central Identification Lab. Dr. Mann is also the director of the Forensic Science Academy and my mentor on my road to becoming a working physical anthropologist. Dr. Mann is also one of only seventy-three forensic scientists to be certified as a Diplomate by the American Board of Forensic Anthropologists. I have visited with him previously in Honolulu and each time it is amazing conversation and enlightenment.
JPAC/CIL is an organization that houses one of the largest forensic anthropology labs on the planet. Their mandate includes the repatriation of U.S. servicemen/women who have lost their lives in combat anywhere in the world where they may have been called to duty. Teams of archaeologist, anthropologists, pathologists and many others involved in the work it takes to bring these people home. The ultimate goal of this organization is to reunite the remains of servicemen/women lost in combat with their families that only wish to lay to rest their beloved.
Some cases that are in the process for human remain identification are WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam conflict and the Cold War that CIL are in the process of identifying. For more information see (http://www.jpac.pacom.mil/index.php?page=wars_and_conflicts&size=100&ind=2).
The work that is done here at JPAC/CIL relates to the class I am currently taking (Archaeology of Death) in the fact that the work these people do answers questions about the past with the thanatic factor determination which may be reviled from the remains of those individuals found.
Just to add the experience of visiting Dr.Mann today as I was getting ready to leave he presented me with a personally signed copy of his book " Forensic Detective: How I Cracked the World's Toughest Cases"
Sooo Awesome.
(image credit: http://www.jpac.pacom.mil/)
Aloha and Ma halo
Well I have had an adventuresome time this afternoon...in the fact that I had the amazing opportunity to visit with the director of the Forensic Science Academy at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu. Dr. Robert Mann is the overseer of the forensic identification part of the JPAC/CIL or the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command and Central Identification Lab. Dr. Mann is also the director of the Forensic Science Academy and my mentor on my road to becoming a working physical anthropologist. Dr. Mann is also one of only seventy-three forensic scientists to be certified as a Diplomate by the American Board of Forensic Anthropologists. I have visited with him previously in Honolulu and each time it is amazing conversation and enlightenment.
JPAC/CIL is an organization that houses one of the largest forensic anthropology labs on the planet. Their mandate includes the repatriation of U.S. servicemen/women who have lost their lives in combat anywhere in the world where they may have been called to duty. Teams of archaeologist, anthropologists, pathologists and many others involved in the work it takes to bring these people home. The ultimate goal of this organization is to reunite the remains of servicemen/women lost in combat with their families that only wish to lay to rest their beloved.
Some cases that are in the process for human remain identification are WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam conflict and the Cold War that CIL are in the process of identifying. For more information see (http://www.jpac.pacom.mil/index.php?page=wars_and_conflicts&size=100&ind=2).
The work that is done here at JPAC/CIL relates to the class I am currently taking (Archaeology of Death) in the fact that the work these people do answers questions about the past with the thanatic factor determination which may be reviled from the remains of those individuals found.
Just to add the experience of visiting Dr.Mann today as I was getting ready to leave he presented me with a personally signed copy of his book " Forensic Detective: How I Cracked the World's Toughest Cases"
Sooo Awesome.
Aloha and Ma halo
Friday, 8 February 2013
Elmer McCurdy??????? Who the Hell is that?
I recently found a story that kinda interested me in a few aspects. First it was a story of a mummy and second is was a mummy that no one knew was a mummy..Awesome.
(image credit: http://getglue.com/feed)
Elmer McCurdy was an outlaw and not a very good one at that.While enlisted in the military the only thing he gained from the experience was a penchant for nitroglycerine explosives. He was kicked out of a gang of thieves after a botched train robbery when he blew up a safe and melted all the loot inside to the floor of the box car it was in. So he joined another band of scurvy madmen and they successfully robbed a passenger train in October 1911 but after an hour long shoot out at the gangs hide out McCurdy was shot dead. Now this really should have been the end of the story for this crazy bastard but alas it is not for I am now writing about it over one hundred years later.
As no one claimed his body the funeral director in Pawhuska, Oklahoma embalmed him and in doing so did it so successfully that McCurdy actually became mummified. The director then decided to use McCurdy as a window display as this practice was not unheard of at the time.
(image credit: http://terrysplace2000.tripod.com/mccurdy.html)
Over the next five years McCurdy was the window display of this funeral home until a dodgy fellow claiming to be his kin came in to claim his corpse and take him away. This is where things get a bit weird. The dodgy guy was a associate from the Great Patterson Show and wanted to have the body of McCurdy for the "freak" show part of the carnival and called him "The Oklahoma Outlaw". This was the beginning of a sixty year long odyssey. From 1916 onward McCurdy was passed from show to and at one time he was displayed in the lobby of a theater during the 1933 film Narcotic. As his adventures continued McCurdy was even used as collateral for a $500 loan. During the 1930's and much of the 1940's the "Museum of Crime" had the privilege of his presence. As the 1960's came and went the real identity and origin of McCurdy was pretty much lost. He was eventually sold to a wax museum in 1971 as a mannequin.
Poor old McCurdy ended up in a scary funny house painted with orange spray paint used to scare children and teens. During the filming of "The Six Million Dollar Man" in 1976 the director did not like the look of the orange painted "mannequin" in the fun house scene. So as one of the crew members grabbed hold of old McCurdy's arm to move him his arm fell off in the horrified crew members hand.
An investigation was done to find out who and how this mummy ended up in a fun house by a forensic team. Contained in his mouth was a 1924 penny and a ticket for the Sonney Amusement’s Museum of Crime in Los Angeles.
(image credit: http://www.anomalies-unlimited.com/Death/Elmer.html)
Through a thorough investigation and following the trail that McCurdy took to get to be in fun house McCurdy's identity was reviled and there was a lot of press surrounding his identification. It was also decided that he should now be inhumed under a lot of cement so that he could finally get some well needed rest. In 1977 Elmer McCurdy was laid to rest at the Summit View Cemetery in Guthrie, Oklahoma where he still rests today.
Awesome story...... Ma halo for reading this and I'm outta here.
I recently found a story that kinda interested me in a few aspects. First it was a story of a mummy and second is was a mummy that no one knew was a mummy..Awesome.
(image credit: http://getglue.com/feed)
Elmer McCurdy was an outlaw and not a very good one at that.While enlisted in the military the only thing he gained from the experience was a penchant for nitroglycerine explosives. He was kicked out of a gang of thieves after a botched train robbery when he blew up a safe and melted all the loot inside to the floor of the box car it was in. So he joined another band of scurvy madmen and they successfully robbed a passenger train in October 1911 but after an hour long shoot out at the gangs hide out McCurdy was shot dead. Now this really should have been the end of the story for this crazy bastard but alas it is not for I am now writing about it over one hundred years later.
As no one claimed his body the funeral director in Pawhuska, Oklahoma embalmed him and in doing so did it so successfully that McCurdy actually became mummified. The director then decided to use McCurdy as a window display as this practice was not unheard of at the time.
(image credit: http://terrysplace2000.tripod.com/mccurdy.html)Over the next five years McCurdy was the window display of this funeral home until a dodgy fellow claiming to be his kin came in to claim his corpse and take him away. This is where things get a bit weird. The dodgy guy was a associate from the Great Patterson Show and wanted to have the body of McCurdy for the "freak" show part of the carnival and called him "The Oklahoma Outlaw". This was the beginning of a sixty year long odyssey. From 1916 onward McCurdy was passed from show to and at one time he was displayed in the lobby of a theater during the 1933 film Narcotic. As his adventures continued McCurdy was even used as collateral for a $500 loan. During the 1930's and much of the 1940's the "Museum of Crime" had the privilege of his presence. As the 1960's came and went the real identity and origin of McCurdy was pretty much lost. He was eventually sold to a wax museum in 1971 as a mannequin.
Poor old McCurdy ended up in a scary funny house painted with orange spray paint used to scare children and teens. During the filming of "The Six Million Dollar Man" in 1976 the director did not like the look of the orange painted "mannequin" in the fun house scene. So as one of the crew members grabbed hold of old McCurdy's arm to move him his arm fell off in the horrified crew members hand.
An investigation was done to find out who and how this mummy ended up in a fun house by a forensic team. Contained in his mouth was a 1924 penny and a ticket for the Sonney Amusement’s Museum of Crime in Los Angeles.
(image credit: http://www.anomalies-unlimited.com/Death/Elmer.html)
Through a thorough investigation and following the trail that McCurdy took to get to be in fun house McCurdy's identity was reviled and there was a lot of press surrounding his identification. It was also decided that he should now be inhumed under a lot of cement so that he could finally get some well needed rest. In 1977 Elmer McCurdy was laid to rest at the Summit View Cemetery in Guthrie, Oklahoma where he still rests today.
Awesome story...... Ma halo for reading this and I'm outta here.
Wednesday, 30 January 2013
How to go out of this World???? Skin on...Skin off!!!!!
I was asked by my professor in Archaeology of Death to think about what I would want to be buried with to exemplify my time in the living world. Well now this is a conundrum of insurmountable proportions. I suppose the easiest would be to pick things that represent the items and things that mean a lot to me personally. As I am not a very materialistic person and love experiences over owning things, the small amount of things I do have would have to come with me. That being the case I would like to be cremated BUT..... I would like to have my skin made into a parchment like scroll and placed on display to show my tattoos (because I have a few that mean a lot to me). I personally would like to have my dog Buttercup ( a very affectionate and loving Red-nose pit bull) cremated with me but only after she has lived out her time on earth. A flask of good Scotch could help the transition from this life to the next.
I really want to be placed in a biodegradable container that I saw on the internet that has a nut or seed of a tree on top that is planted in the ground and you become a tree or shrub. I would want a coconut palm nut and possibly a macadamia tree and to be planted on the Hawaiian Islands. I would also want the type of music I like and Old Time Radio programs to play constantly as I grow into a palm tree.
My friends and family would probably agree with the above ( maybe not with the skin thing) and would probably add my collection of Elvis Presley memorabilia. I do really love Elvis. As well as a good book as I am always reading something.
This may seem a bit extreme, morbid or disconcerning to some but in society today we have a huge disconnect with our deceased and to me that is disconcerning. We want to be done with the dead as soon as possible and move on never to see or pay any attention to them again. I want to have my memory Rock'n out with Psychedelic Stoner rock , Elvis and scary Old Time Radio programs forever.....MAN and WOMAN!!!!!!
Maybe we living should think more about how you want to go out in this world and keep your own ROCK ROCK'N.
I'm outta here.....not for GOOD...... just right now.
I was asked by my professor in Archaeology of Death to think about what I would want to be buried with to exemplify my time in the living world. Well now this is a conundrum of insurmountable proportions. I suppose the easiest would be to pick things that represent the items and things that mean a lot to me personally. As I am not a very materialistic person and love experiences over owning things, the small amount of things I do have would have to come with me. That being the case I would like to be cremated BUT..... I would like to have my skin made into a parchment like scroll and placed on display to show my tattoos (because I have a few that mean a lot to me). I personally would like to have my dog Buttercup ( a very affectionate and loving Red-nose pit bull) cremated with me but only after she has lived out her time on earth. A flask of good Scotch could help the transition from this life to the next.
I really want to be placed in a biodegradable container that I saw on the internet that has a nut or seed of a tree on top that is planted in the ground and you become a tree or shrub. I would want a coconut palm nut and possibly a macadamia tree and to be planted on the Hawaiian Islands. I would also want the type of music I like and Old Time Radio programs to play constantly as I grow into a palm tree.
My friends and family would probably agree with the above ( maybe not with the skin thing) and would probably add my collection of Elvis Presley memorabilia. I do really love Elvis. As well as a good book as I am always reading something.
This may seem a bit extreme, morbid or disconcerning to some but in society today we have a huge disconnect with our deceased and to me that is disconcerning. We want to be done with the dead as soon as possible and move on never to see or pay any attention to them again. I want to have my memory Rock'n out with Psychedelic Stoner rock , Elvis and scary Old Time Radio programs forever.....MAN and WOMAN!!!!!!
Maybe we living should think more about how you want to go out in this world and keep your own ROCK ROCK'N.
I'm outta here.....not for GOOD...... just right now.
Thursday, 17 January 2013
The Foot...or is it????
It was about two years ago as and friend and I were sitting in the osteology lab at Camosun College doing some preparation for the class we were about to TA. A gunned up uniformed RCMP officer knocked on the lab door and asked to speak to our professor. We ( rather I ) was relieved that the officer was not there to speak to me or ask me to take a walk with him to his car or what not. He proceeded to produce a zip lock bag of the large freezer dimension that had a brown green lump in the bottom and moisture residue on the inside.And when he held it up it was like we were looking through a window and as the officer kind of shook it at us made it seem like it was raining on the inside of the bag. The officer then asked our professor if she could have a look at what was in the bag and tell him "what the Hell is it, and do we have something that I should be concern with?" Well the bag was peeled open and there was this smell that I can only express as something exotic yet familiar, having worked in veterinary hospitals for years one gets to know the smell of decomposition and rotting flesh.
Anyhow .....WOW this one was ripe for the pickin... It was bloated and had what looked like hair of some kind on it. The object of the REEK looked to have been in water for sometime and as there had , in recent months , been human feet washing up on the shores of the Gulf Islands and in and around Vancouver this officer was wanting confirmation on the identification of this particular item. At first glance it certainly had the characteristics of a human foot. The size and shape were on par. So our professor got out a couple of bamboo skewers and ask my friend and I to have a poke around and see what we thought. As we took a closer look it became apparent that the foot was not human or if it was this person had some how traded toe nails for some serious claws. The bloating of the tissue had covered the claws and for all anyone who came across this it would have looked like a human foot for sure. Our professor gave her conclusion to the officer that indeed this was a bear foot and kindly asked the officer if she could have it. He was relieved and said of course it was of no use to him. My professor gladly took it and placed it outside her office window on the ledge to save anyone who entered her office the aroma of the water logged bear foot.
That was my first foray into the realm of forensic anthropology ( not a big case really) and I loved every stinking minute of it.
Anyhow .....WOW this one was ripe for the pickin... It was bloated and had what looked like hair of some kind on it. The object of the REEK looked to have been in water for sometime and as there had , in recent months , been human feet washing up on the shores of the Gulf Islands and in and around Vancouver this officer was wanting confirmation on the identification of this particular item. At first glance it certainly had the characteristics of a human foot. The size and shape were on par. So our professor got out a couple of bamboo skewers and ask my friend and I to have a poke around and see what we thought. As we took a closer look it became apparent that the foot was not human or if it was this person had some how traded toe nails for some serious claws. The bloating of the tissue had covered the claws and for all anyone who came across this it would have looked like a human foot for sure. Our professor gave her conclusion to the officer that indeed this was a bear foot and kindly asked the officer if she could have it. He was relieved and said of course it was of no use to him. My professor gladly took it and placed it outside her office window on the ledge to save anyone who entered her office the aroma of the water logged bear foot.
That was my first foray into the realm of forensic anthropology ( not a big case really) and I loved every stinking minute of it.
Thursday, 10 January 2013
Introduction
Hello all... my name is Lindsay and I am a fourth year Anthropology Major at the University of Victoria, BC.
In my previous lives I was a Veterinary Assistant for 7-8 years from Ontario to Whistler/Pemberton ending here on Vancouver Island. I tired of the hospital work and hours and decided to give addiction and mental health a try and worked as a front line Psychiatric Rehabilitation Worker for the Vancouver Island Health Authority Mental Health and Addictions branch as well as a Addiction and Mental Heath Counselor for the Cool Aid Society on the Island.
This work lasted about 6.5 years and I burned out mentally and physically. So I left Victoria for the beautiful island of Oahu in Hawaii to clear my thoughts and recharge my batteries. While there I decided to leave my stable government jobs , throw caution to the wind and go back to school.
I actually started studying Anthropology with the intent on focusing on Osteology , Taphonomy and Archaeology. I really enjoy the challenge of this type of study and the detective work involved in deciding what is what.
I have worked on projects here in Victoria for the First Nations to identify human remains for repatriation. I also help TA for the Archaeology Field Assistant Program run out of Camosun College every spring , as well as Forensic Anthropology Day here at UVIC for Island high school students and lots of other volunteer stuff all focused around my studies. I plan to continue on to grad school hopefully on the Hawaiian Islands but we will see.
I return to Hawaii every year to keep in touch with friends and contacts that I have made over my years of study ranging from archaeologists to people working at JPAC/CIL in hopes of working on the Hawaiian Islands in the future.
In my previous lives I was a Veterinary Assistant for 7-8 years from Ontario to Whistler/Pemberton ending here on Vancouver Island. I tired of the hospital work and hours and decided to give addiction and mental health a try and worked as a front line Psychiatric Rehabilitation Worker for the Vancouver Island Health Authority Mental Health and Addictions branch as well as a Addiction and Mental Heath Counselor for the Cool Aid Society on the Island.
This work lasted about 6.5 years and I burned out mentally and physically. So I left Victoria for the beautiful island of Oahu in Hawaii to clear my thoughts and recharge my batteries. While there I decided to leave my stable government jobs , throw caution to the wind and go back to school.
I actually started studying Anthropology with the intent on focusing on Osteology , Taphonomy and Archaeology. I really enjoy the challenge of this type of study and the detective work involved in deciding what is what.
I have worked on projects here in Victoria for the First Nations to identify human remains for repatriation. I also help TA for the Archaeology Field Assistant Program run out of Camosun College every spring , as well as Forensic Anthropology Day here at UVIC for Island high school students and lots of other volunteer stuff all focused around my studies. I plan to continue on to grad school hopefully on the Hawaiian Islands but we will see.
I return to Hawaii every year to keep in touch with friends and contacts that I have made over my years of study ranging from archaeologists to people working at JPAC/CIL in hopes of working on the Hawaiian Islands in the future.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)