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Peruvian man kept pre-Hispanic mummy in his house: "It's like my spiritual girlfriend"
After verification of the remains, it turned out to be a man of at least 45 years, given the conformation of the bone structure of the skull and of an approximate height of 1.51 meters, according to preliminary investigations
March 2, 2023 6:42am
Updated: March 2, 2023 6:42am
Peruvian Police seized a pre-Hispanic mummy over the weekend from a delivery man, which he had had in his home for some three decades, according to an official statement and a video that went viral on social media.
The incident occurred in the Peruvian region of Puno, on the border with Bolivia, in a park where the delivery man was with some friends while they were drinking alcoholic beverages.
Julio César Bermejo, 26, allegedly had the mummified remains in his possession, and is being detained while the Prosecutor's Office determines the circumstances of the case, government sources informed AFP on Tuesday.
The Ministry of Culture reported that "the pre-Hispanic cultural asset" is between "600 and 800 years old" and was identified as "a mummified adult male individual, presumably from the eastern area of Puno," a region of the Peruvian Andes, some 1,300 kilometers southeast of Lima.
In statements recorded on video by a local journalist, Bermejo said that the mummy, which he "affectionately" calls "Juanita," has been in his house for "almost 30 years," since his father located it.
He says that he "got attached" to the remains in time.
"At home she is in my room, she sleeps with me. I take care of her, I maintain her. She is like my spiritual girlfriend," he added.
However, when verifying the remains, a specialist from the Ministry of Culture said that "she is no Jane, it is Juan," noting that it would be a man of at least 45 years of age given the conformation of the bone structure of the skull and of an approximate height of 1.51 meters.
Bermejo denied trying to sell the mummy and claimed that he was transporting it because "my friends wanted to see it" before he was going to purportedly donate it to a museum in the area.
"If I behave badly, she punishes me, she pulls my legs" (feet), said the young man, who described her as "an energy node."
In the statement issued on Sunday, the Ministry of Culture said that it "immediately ordered custody" of the mummified remains, "with the aim of protecting and preserving heritage."
