Johan Reinhard

Age: 52

Hometown: New Lenox, Illinois

Current address: Franklin, West Virginia

Education: Ph.D. in cultural anthropology

Occupation: Anthropologist, specializing in sacred mountain research.

Location of work: Andes (Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Ecuador) and Himalaya (Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan, India)

Why I do what I do:

Anthropology combines my interests in other cultures, history, and archaeology with outdoor activities (mountain climbing, scuba diving) and exploration, thereby increasing my understanding of enigmatic customs and places.

Most exciting moment in the field:

Discovering a frozen Inca mummy (above right) at 20,700 feet (6309 meters)!

Check out our online feature, Ice Treasures of the Inca.

Excerpt from “Peru’s Ice Maidens: Unwrapping the Secrets” by Johan Reinhard
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, June 1996

“It was early on September 8 when Miguel and I set out for the summit. We anticipated a good view of Sabancaya spitting ash. Instead we found the Ampato maiden.

Carrying an 80-pound mummy down the mountain to our high camp, 1,500 feet below, proved even more difficult than expected. We were, after all, at an altitude higher than Mount McKinley. We were both weak from having eaten virtually nothing the entire day, and I was further debilitated by diarrhea. The afternoon was drawing on, and to make matters worse, it had begun snowing. In the gathering gloom the ash cloud from Sabancaya took on a sinister aspect.”

Click here to order the June issue of NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC magazine.

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