May 5, 2016

Adventures in the bone cave

The steep, treacherous climb up the hill overlooking Parte village in Chin State offers striking views of the surrounding green mountains, terraced farms below and the craggy peak above.

Trees and saplings cling to the sparse hillside and, here and there, a piece of human bone or a fragment of skull pokes out from among the short, thick grass.

At the peak, piles of bones spill from the entrance of a small cave and litter the ground. Jawbones, hip joints, sections of spinal columns and ribs lie in a chaotic mix under the burning sun.

The remains are from bodies left until just a few decades ago, before the village converted to Christianity at the end of World War Two, villagers say. (Courtesy of Frontier Myanmar)

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