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It was a greatly delayed homecoming. But on Tuesday, the remains of five Kawesqar Indians, kidnapped in 1881 and brought to Europe for display in zoos, were returned to Chile for burial in their ancestral homeland in Tierra del Fuego in the country's far south.
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet was on hand for the arrival of the remains, contained in five baskets. In light of recent evidence indicating that the Chilean government had allowed the abduction of Kawesqars, in addition to those belonging to a number of other native tribes, Bachelet said her country had been guilty of "neglect in the face of such abuses." She went on to say that "as we near the bicentennial of our independence, we have to confront both the brightest points and the darkest moments of our history."
But it's not just Chile that has to confront the fate of those who were put on show across Europe. The five who arrived back in South America on Tuesday -- given the names Henry, Lise, Grethe, Piskouna and Capitán by their captors -- were just some of the hundreds of natives put on display across Europe at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th.
Human Zoos
Known as "human zoos," the shows involved the abduction of indigenous peoples from around the world, particularly Africa. Often they were displayed in villages built in zoos specifically for the show, but they were also made to perform on stage for the amusement of a paying public.
One of the most prominent of the human zoo operators was the Hamburg animal trader Carl Hagenbeck, whose name still graces the zoo in Hamburg. Indeed, it was a Hagenbeck expedition which brought the five Kawesqars to Europe (along with six others, five of whom were allowed to return with the sixth dying on the way home). They took part in Hagenbeck shows in Berlin, Munich, Leipzig, Stuttgart, Nuremberg and Zurich in addition to Hamburg. In Paris, the show, called "The Savages from the Land of Fire," attracted a half-million visitors.
'Most Emotional Moment of My Career'
The remains were discovered during research for a documentary film about the human zoos. Chilean filmmaker Hans Mülchi not only found evidence that the Chilean government had cooperated with Hagenbeck, but also learned that the five Kawesqars had died in Zürich, victims of European diseases such as measles. Their remains were stored in the Anthropological Institute at the University of Zürich and were identified by anthropologist Christoph Zollikofer, who accompanied them back to Chile.
"It was the most emotional moment of my career," Mülchi said, according to the Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper.
The bones have been handed over to surviving members of the Kawesqar tribe and are to be buried in a traditional indigenous ceremony on a remote island in Tierra del Fuego. Home at last.
These five members of the Kawesqar tribe, which is home in Tierra del Fuego in Chile's far south, were kidnapped in 1881 and sent to Europe to be displayed in "human zoos." The five died in Zürich a year after their capture. Their remains were only just returned to Chile on Tuesday.
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Human zoos were popular in Europe at the end of the 1800s and the beginning of the 1900s. They included indigenous peoples kidnapped from all corners of the globe. This group is from Ceylon, present day Sri Lanka.
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Many were put on display in zoos in major European cities. Others were made to perform on stage for a paying public. The German animal trader Carl Hagenbeck, whose name still graces the Hamburg zoo, was one of the leaders in the field. This image comes from Hagenbeck show called "Les Indes" about indigenous people from India.
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One of Hagenbeck's human zoo shows received half a million visitors in Paris. Many of those put on display died quickly of diseases unknown in their homelands.
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Carl Hagenbeck's "Galla Truppe," a group from the Oromo people, kidnapped from Ethiopia.
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In his memoirs, Carl Hagenbeck praised himself, writing, "it was my privilege to be the first in the civilized world to present these shows of different races."
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