The Igorot Tribe's Tradition of Hanging Coffins on Cliffs and Cave Walls

UNGKIT.COM – The Igorot people—specifically the Kankanaey ethnic group in the Philippines—practice a unique, ancient burial tradition dating back over 2,000 years.

The Igorot community in Sagada follows a custom of placing and hanging coffins on cliff faces or cave walls.

They believe that this elevated position brings ancestral spirits (Anito) closer to heaven and protects the remains from wild animals and floods.

This hanging burial method comes with specific prerequisites; not everyone is eligible for it. Key requirements include having lived a virtuous and honest life, being married, and having grandchildren.

Regarding the preparation process, elders traditionally carve and shape their own coffins from selected logs while they are still alive.

Before being placed inside the small coffin—which is then hung or pegged to the cliff—the deceased is typically positioned in a fetal curl upon a "death chair."

This curled position, resembling a baby in the womb, symbolizes that humans are born and return to the afterlife in the same manner.

While seated on this wooden death chair, the body is bound with leaves and vines and covered with a blanket.

The body is then smoked to delay decomposition while relatives pay their respects over the course of several days.

Once the body is wrapped in rattan leaves and placed in the coffin, men from the tribe drive metal pegs into the cliff face to suspend the coffin at its final resting place.

Before the coffin is transported to the cliff, mourners allow fluids from the decomposing body to drip onto them, believing this will bring them good fortune. 

Although the ancient funeral rites of the Igorot people are unique, similar practices are also found among the Bo and Guyue tribes in China and the Toraja people of Tana Toraja, Indonesia.

Is there a connection between these three regions? To date, there has been no in-depth research into this matter. (*)

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