The Nazca Head-hunters and their Trophy Heads

The Nazca culture of Peru is perhaps most well-known for the enigmatic Nazca Lines, hundreds of lines and stylized images built into the Peruvian coastal plain. Yet, there is more to this ancient South American civilisation than the mysterious geoglyphs. For instance, the Nazca culture is known to have engaged in the practise of headhunting. This is evident in the so-called ‘trophy heads’. Although these ‘trophy heads’ were first attested in the iconography of Nazca pottery, it has been substantiated by the discovery of at least 100 heads since the early 20^th century.