Along the cliff leading to the remote village of the Anga tribe on the Morobe Plateau in Papua New Guinea, there are hundreds of strange standing and sitting mummies.The red corpses seemed to be imprisoned in bamboo cages to prevent them from jumping on any strangers who dared to approach.However, in reality, this is just the traditional burial method of the local Anga tribe, and it is also the way they used to scare away strangers from the village.From warriors, the elderly, women to children… everyone can be buried using this traditional, somewhat gruesome method of “smoke embalming.”First, experienced embalmers will cut away flesh from the corpse’s feet, knees, and elbows to allow fat and water to drain from the body while the body is smoked.They would then sew up the corpse’s eyes, mouth and anus to reduce the amount of air entering the body and causing putrefaction, and then smoke the body in a very large pit.During the smoking process, sharp bamboo sticks were continuously skewered into the body to make the fat flow out. Relatives would apply this horrible liquid to the body in the belief that it would transfer power from the dead to the living.Once the corpses are dried, they are also covered with a layer of clay or loess to protect them from harmful environmental agents, which is why the mummy’s skin often turns red.The corpses are also often taken home by relatives for “maintenance” care and then returned to the cliff where they live.The Anga tribe considers mummies to be the protectors of the people. The bodies of warriors are always placed in the most solemn places. However, this custom has been strictly prohibited by the government since 1975.
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