a capital idea.That remark warrants the fancy one!
I always thought the idea of taking and shrinking the heads of one’s enemies was really a capital idea. Great thing to hang from one’s rear view mirror!
Seriously I have read books on the Shuar and Tsantas and the reality is rather less than this. Based on my readings, this is a manufactured head for commerce.
The REAL Jivaro (Shuar) WERE ferocious warriors, But they were deeply superstitious and lived in a world of suspicion, curses, and evil spirits. When someone died in a Shuar community, it was believed to be the work of a curse pronounced by a neighboring community. The Community in which the dead person lived could only be protected if an enemy from the suspected Shuar community was killed and his head taken and shrunk. The head had the eyes and mouth sewn shut to keep the spirit of the dead warrior from escaping and harming the community. It was either rare or non-existent for a GENUINE Tsanta to be taken from a non-Jivaro enemy as they were not believed to possess these powers.
At any rate, that is MY recollection of what I had read on this fascinating subject.
a capital idea.That remark warrants the fancy one!
