String of beetle elytra and hair from a tsantsa

Pendant of beetle elytra, with human hair at distal end, cut from tsantsa (shrunken head), Shuar, Ecuador, before 1919

Tsantsas, commonly referred to as ‘shrunken heads’, were made by the Shuar, an indigenous group from the Chicham linguistic family – formally known by the pejorative colonial term ‘Jivaro’ or 'Jivaroan' – who live in the Amazon Basin between the borders of eastern Ecuador and northern Peru. Tsantsas can be made of human or animal skin (primarily sloth or monkey), and are often decorated with feathers, beads and beetle wings.

Tsantsas were originally prepared for ceremonial purposes in order to harness the spirit of the deceased and use that power to serve the group. From the 1870s they acquired significant monetary value as curios on the Western art market. This long lock of hair decorated with beetles' wing-sheaths was purchased on behalf of Henry Wellcome’s Historical Medical Museum from a London auction house in 1919 for £1 1s, with a pierced toucan beak (A670018).

Tsantsas continue to hold dual status as human remains and cultural artefacts with spiritual significance for Shuar communities.