Coca leaves are still used in indigenous medicine and religious ceremonies. Andean people have chewed coca for thousands of years to stave off hunger and as a remedy for ailments from altitude ...

Figure 1: Map of northern Chile, showing locations of study fields from which mummy bones and blood samples of contemporary Andean people were collected (boxed area, right, enlarged at left).

The wealth and sophistication of the legendary Inca people lured many anthropologists and archaeologists to the Andean nations in a quest to understand the Inca's advanced ways and what led to ...