THE GRAVES. 



49 



sepulcliers he had desecrated. Ultimately the lavish rewards offered for attractive "finds" 

 brought him back with lagging footsteps to the unholy but profitable quest. 



Cave 51. 



This was a natural cave of several chambers formed by a group of large irregular rocks. 

 Of ample size for sheltering many mummies, as may be seen from the accompanying view, 

 it was accessible from the city without the hardship of a long or difficult climb on the 

 mountainside. It was accordingly a matter of no little surprise to find that it contained the 



^r^^^^^T-Sc^ . Prqjectign_qfSjrorif 



Figure 46. — Floor plan of Cave 50. 



remains of only one individual — a child of about seven years of age (Ost. Coll. 3210). 

 No pottery was found and no bronzes. In fact the only article obtained here, other than 

 the human bones, was the mandible of a young llama. Here again, in providing for the 

 supposed food-requirements of the deceased, it seems at first as if the local conventions were 

 satisfied by the donation of about as unattractive and little nourishing a portion of an 

 animal as could have been selected, yet it by no means follows that no other food than 

 that represented by the jaw of a llama was provided. The difficulties of quartering a carcass 

 and especially of cutting apart or breaking the bones before the removal of the flesh would 

 be considerable to anyone working only with primitive bronze and stone tools. Pieces of 

 llama flesh carved from the bones would be much easier to provide than severed and broken 

 bones with flesh adhering, and it is reasonable to suppose that boneless rations of this sort 

 may often have been provided, in addition to fruits, maize, potatoes and other vegetables. 

 It is known that medium-sized dogs of the sheep-dog or wolf-like type were kept by the 

 ancient Peruvians. Such animals are inveterate prowlers, always hard to restrain from 

 foraging for themselves, even in civilized communities where fences and doors are common. 

 Unless a burial cave or grave were closed or protected, what was to hinder domestic dogs or 

 wild carnivores from entering, and carrying off any flesh that had been left there? In fact 



