Considering the examples of the Chinchorro mummies and modern taxidermied remains of beloved pets and mascots, several similar trends are apparent. The desire to keep the physical presence of a loved one to aid in the grieving and mourning processes is shared, so preservation of the physical body is necessary in both cases. Many taxidermists are hesitant to work on pets, however, since it can be difficult to ensure the appearance will be sufficiently realistic for the customer. Inevitably some people who seek this treatment for their pets are disappointed, since their loved one is not accurately represented or something may have gone wrong with the preservation. When it is done well, however, some people are even moved to tears, like Stormy in the video below.
Emotions can run high when we are reunited with loved ones, especially if they're deceased.
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| Owney with his mail clerk companions. |
Accuracy is important when the individual being preserved is specifically important, as opposed to a trophy mount. Any recognizable figure who differs in physical presence from their representation is likely to disappoint, and a desire for realism and historical accuracy was part of the reason Owney was restored, since it was determined from photos in the era that he had a larger snout than he seemed to in his preserved form. Also, he was beginning to lose hair and had been given a jacket by the Smithsonian Institution while he was displayed there to cover up balding patches. Many visitors to the Postal Museum, where he is now housed, have their pictures taken with Owney. Truly, how often does one get a photo opportunity with a celebrity, human or otherwise?
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| Two adults and two children, presumed to be a family. © Philippe Plailly/EURELIOS |
A lifelike appearance does not seem to be as important in the case of the Chinchorro mummies, although several of them, like Owney, underwent repairs after their initial preservation. While we are as yet uncertain of the intentions of the Chinchorro culture in mummifying their dead, it is clear that they represented a continued attribution of humanity to the remains and were important enough to have such a large amount of resources dedicated to their symbolic survival.
While many taxidermied specimens are kept for years or even decades in memory and exhibition, the Chinchorro mummies were eventually buried. We are uncertain whether this was due to a set of beliefs about the physical body’s role after death and a timeline attributed to it, to practical concerns of space in the community or house, or some other reason.
-Dylyn Wilkinson
Link to : Comparison-Methods
Link to : Comparison-Conquest
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