{"id":410,"date":"2024-03-06T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-03-06T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fontegaiatour.it\/en\/blog\/?p=410"},"modified":"2024-05-22T01:53:45","modified_gmt":"2024-05-21T23:53:45","slug":"the-mummies-of-the-toraja-people-sulawesi-when-death-goes-beyond-death","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fontegaiatour.it\/en\/blog\/the-mummies-of-the-toraja-people-sulawesi-when-death-goes-beyond-death\/","title":{"rendered":"The mummies of the Toraja people, Sulawesi: when death goes “beyond death”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Sulawesi, also known as Celebes, is part of the Greater Sunda Islands and is located between Borneo and the Moluccas. Uncontaminated seabeds, forests, endemic flora and fauna and the soul of the island: Tana Toraja<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

People of the highlands<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The highlands of Sulawesi are in fact inhabited by the Toraja,<\/strong> “people of the highlands”. They are farmers and breeders strongly linked to animist traditions and rituals. This people remained isolated for centuries until 1920<\/strong>, when missionaries landed in southern Sulawesi to convert the animist tribes to Christianity. Tana Toraja is a rural area with cultivation of rice, cocoa, cloves and coffee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to a legend, the Toraja came from Cambodia. During a storm, they were shipwrecked in Indonesia and, unable to go back, they used boats as roofs for their new homes. Even now houses retain this bizarre feature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Toraja\"<\/figure><\/div>
\"Toraja\"<\/figure><\/div>
\"Toraja\"<\/figure><\/div>
\"Toraja\"<\/figure><\/div><\/div>
\"Toraja\"<\/figure><\/div>
\"Toraja\"<\/figure><\/div>
\"Toraja\"<\/figure><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

They are on wooden poles to defend themselves from rodents and snakes and there are three levels. The bamboo roof is designed to withstand rain and wind in the monsoon season. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The house is a place where the family can gather both physically and spiritually. The external walls are decorated with sculptures and paintings, geometric designs and are built next to each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The colors used have a spiritual connotation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n