Scalping

Karl Bodmer's 1844 aquatint Scalp Dance of the Minitarres depicts Siouan Hidatsa people in a scalp dance.

Scalping is the act of cutting or tearing a part of the human scalp, with hair attached, from the head, and generally occurred in warfare with the scalp being a trophy.[1] Scalp-taking is considered part of the broader cultural practice of the taking and display of human body parts as trophies, and may have developed as an alternative to the taking of human heads, for scalps were easier to take, transport, and preserve for subsequent display. Scalping independently developed in various cultures in both the Old and New Worlds.[2]

  1. ^ Griffin, Anastasia M. (2008). Georg Friederici's (1906) "Scalping and Similar Warfare Customs in America" with a Critical Introduction. ProQuest. ISBN 9780549562092 p.18.
  2. ^ Mensforth, Robert P.; Chacon, Richard J. Chacon; Dye, David H. (2007). "Human Trophy Taking in Eastern North America During the Archaic Period: The Relationship to Warfare and Social Complexity". The Taking and Displaying of Human Body Parts as Trophies by Amerindians. Springer Science + Business Media. p. 225.

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