Museum of High Altitude Archaeology — Attraction in Salta

The High Altitude Archeological Museum presents collections related to the archaeological heritage associated with the ceremonies carried out on the Andes high peaks. Since its opening in 2004, the primary mission of the museum is aimed at creating a space for the conservation, research and dissemination of the cultural contexts of the pre-Hispanic world of great historical significance.

Its main collection presents the archaeological heritage discovered in 1999 at the top of the Llullaillaco volcano in Salta, Argentina. In that sacred place, more than five hundred years ago, the lives of three children and a set of miniature ceremonial objects that had a symbolic character were given to the gods in the context of the Inca Capacocha ceremony.

The excellent state of conservation of the children - today known as the Lightning Girl, the Boy and the Maiden- implied a challenge in the application of techniques that allow their appropriate preservation and presentation. The bodies of the Llullaillaco Children are kept in capsules designed according to the Cryopreservation guidelines that guarantee their correct preservation.

The MAAM as a dynamic space for interaction, learning and communication promotes the recognition of pre-Hispanic history, the construction of identity diversity and collective memory. Throughout their rooms, the institution managed to position itself as a scientific and technological reference in terms of the conservation and presentation of the heritage it protects. It also makes it possible to revalue and re-signify a past that is still alive in the different practices, knowledge and materiality that transmit a deep ancestral...

The 3 mummified kids is something unique in the world and really worth seeing. I recommend anyone in Salta city to visit this place. The 3 star qualification though is the result of a very poor building facility way below the level of what it is being presented. The building was not intended for a museum and that is made very clear from a visitor experience. Not to mention the also very poor restrooms. It is very sad that the museum has the 3 kids mummies but they can only have one in display at the time due to lack of a place in conditions to show them all at the same time (very special temperature, preassure, humidity and air composition requirements which are available in one chamber only). Therefore, the museum displays one kid and rotates each every 6 months. Still worth visiting but these mummy kids should be the icon of Salta province. They could easily be the single reason to build a very important tematic park/museum/investigation centre. Still cannot accept I was only able to see one kid (the boy) while the Doncell and the girl of the lighting were there but not available for...

There is, for want of a better turn of phrase, a roster for the children sacrificed on the mountain top. The child whose body was struck by lightning was available to see when we were there. It is important to remember that, whatever our current beliefs, some no less mistaken or bizarre, this child, perfect in her own way, went to die for the safety of her people. Go, see her or her companions, but please, remember to respect her courage and her ultimate sacrifice for her peoples. Salta is worth visiting if only to see, and pay your respects to, these extraordinary young people.

In passing the cultural insights offered by this museum are certainly worth seeing independent of the children. Would I travel to Salta for the reason of the rest of the museum alone? No. If in Salta would I consider it an error not to go? Yes. The children, frozen in body and time, make the journey across Argentina absolutely worth while. Just, when you go, pause to consider the enormity of her sacrifice and use that as a window to consider your own...