Thomas William Whiffen
| Capt. Thomas William Whiffen | |||||||||||
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| Born | 1878 | ||||||||||
| Died | 1922 | ||||||||||
| Residence | United Service Club. SW; Ardwick, Sussex | ||||||||||
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Contents
Notes
Office Notes
House Notes
1910.02.11 proposed by T.A. Joyce, seconded by A.P. Maudslay
(half pay) 14th Hussars
death reported in Report of the Council for 1922
Notes From Elsewhere
Between 1908 and 1909 Whiffen toured the Putumayo and established contact with some Indian tribes who had not been confronted by modernity. In 1915 the London-based publisher Contable and Company published his book Northwest Amazon: notes of some months spent along cannibal tribes , which counted his trips through Brazil and Colombia, specifically in the region between the rivers Issa (or Ica ) and Apaporis , in the Putumayo region. This study focuses on the indigenous cultures of that area, primarily the Boro and Witoto cultures.
The author describes his way of life, including the description of his homes, his forms of agriculture, cooking, the manufacture of weapons, his ways of dressing. It has also proved to be of great importance for ethnobotany and the study of traditional medicine, as it describes the use of native plants for healing and healing. The book also collects songs, much of the vocabulary and describes dances, ceremonies, spiritual and magical customs.
The practice of cannibalism is also addressed in this book. Several types of explanations are suggested; from the cultural point of view exposes the revenge or the materialisation of a displeasure towards the enemy. Survival ratios such as the need to con - figure any type of protein in a jungle environment are also discussed. Finally brings up some ritual reasons, such as the desire to acquire some characteristics of the dead that is consumed.
Before the appearance of his book Northwest Amazon , Whiffen was called to render declaratory before the English Parliament, which investigated the abuses committed by the rubber workers like Julio César Arana of the Eagle . Whiffen was accused of taking advantage of the support received from the rubber workers to discredit the Indians and not to denounce the abuses of the colonizers.
Publications
External Publications
The North west AMAZONS. NOTES OF SOME MONTHS SPENT. AMONG CANNIBAL TRIBES. BY. THOMAS WHIFFEN. F.R.G.S., F.R.A.I.. Captain H.P. (14th Hussars).
House Publications
Related Material Details
RAI Material
photos
Other Material
his photographic and ethnographic collections are in the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Cambridge