How are shrunken heads made?
I’m sure they have to take the skull out, but how? And why do certain cultures shrink human heads anyway? — Headhunter Joe, via AOL Dear Joe: Another wholesome topic. But if I don’t explain this stuff, who will? Headhunters can be found in various parts of the world, but the only people I know of who actually shrank heads (supposedly the practice has been stamped out) were the Jivaro of Ecuador and Peru, who live in the remote rain forest around the headwaters of the Amazon. The heads, called tsantsa, were to the Jivaro what scalps were to some North American tribes–trophies of battle. The Jivaro tribes were constantly attacking one another, mostly to avenge some real or imagined wrong. The practical goal of these raids was wives and booty–the Jivaro were polygamous, and had to be, or their constant losses in battle soon would have rendered them extinct. But they figured, if you didn’t get a few heads out of the deal, where was the fun? Shrinking a head involved an elaborate ritual.