Unexpected Topologies and Burials in Chile: The Consumption of the Dead, the Animitas, and Illegal Burials in the Andes

Abstract

This paper (number 4) in the research project ‘Burying the Dead’ follows the introductory comments and typology of previous papers ( Aguilar, 2025 ) but moves the material context of historically state sanctioned cemeteries to a wider diversity of graves in Chile. Research visits to cemeteries in Chile and archives were carried out between June 2024 and March 2025, and work on mass graves and archives in Chile have been carried out since 1999. 1 This paper, in the context of Chile, outlines three further types of funeral diversity and graveyard topology, all three linked to violent phenomena: 1) the crash of FAU 571, an Uruguayan Air Force plane, on the Andes Mountains on 13 October 1972, and the memorial/burial of the victims built on the same sight of the crash upon the Andes; 2) the public memorials on streets and cemeteries (animitas) dedicated to children and the vulnerable who died violently in car accidents, as a result of crime or sadness; and 3) an example of the memorials and graveyards of those who died violently after been kidnapped and tortured by Armed Forces and police personnel during the years of the Pinochet military government 1973-1990 ( Acuña, 2007 ), the tomb of Leopoldo Benítez Herrera (d.1973).