The Mummy of San Andrés is a human mummy belonging to the Guanche culture, who were the ancient inhabitants of the Canary Islands, Spain.
It is one of the best preserved Guanche mummies, and is one of the few that has a proper name, Mummy of San Andrés.
Name and etymology
The individual who became known as the Mummy of San Andrés takes his modern name from the village of San Andrés in the Anaga region of northeastern Tenerife, where he was discovered in a burial cave.[1] No historical Guanche name for the individual is known, and the designation is a modern archaeological convention.
Like a number of well-known archaeological human remains, including Tollund Man, Grauballe Man and Lindow Man, he is identified by the place in which he was found rather than by a personal name. The designation "Mummy of San Andrés" distinguishes the individual from other preserved Guanche mummies held in museum collections.
Background
The mummy is a male of about 25 to 30 years partially covered with goatskin with 6 strips that surround it. It was found in a cave in a ravine outside the village of San Andrés. The mummy was found in the Anaga massif, an area on the island of Tenerife that is rich in archaeological sites and cave burials.[1] It is thought that the mummy might have been that of a Mencey (aboriginal king), or a leading figure in Guanche society of the time.
The exact year of the mummy's discovery is unknown. The specimen was kept at the Museo Municipal of Santa Cruz de Tenerife until 1958, when the mummy became part of the collections of the Museum of Nature and Man (Museo de la Naturaleza y el Hombre) of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, where it currently is. It is considered the best Guanche mummy preserved in the museum, and the most representative.
Data on the mummy
- Gender: male.
- Age: 25 to 30 years or so.
- Culture: Guanche.
- Type of mummification: mummy ceremonial.
- Type of burial: burial cave.
- Location: Anaga (Tenerife).
- Shown at: The Museum of Nature and Man (Santa Cruz de Tenerife), along with other Guanche mummies preserved.
- Interesting facts: Found on a wooden board (now this plate not displayed to the public).
See also
References
- Fregel, Rosa; Ordóñez, Antonio C.; Arnay, Matilde (2015). "Guanchinescan Antiquities: The Commerce and Collection of Indigenous Human Remains and Artefacts from the Canary Islands". Culture & History Digital Journal. 4 (2). doi:10.3989/chdj.2015.018.
28°27′50″N 16°14′58″W / 28.4639°N 16.2494°W / 28.4639; -16.2494