CA - Apparent altar containing bones, human skull, found in a Pasadena back yard

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Altar containing human bones found in Pasadena back yard (Pasadena Star-News)
PASADENA - Police detectives and coroner's officials are investigating after the discovery of an apparent altar of some kind containing bones, including a human skull, in a Pasadena back yard.
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While searching over the area, however, officers did find "some type of makeshift altar" in a residential back yard, Clawson.

The pile of items was comprised of sticks, candles, incense, burned artifacts, animal bones, human bones and a human skull.

The bones were were collected by the Los Angeles County Department of Coroner for examination, coroner's Lt. Cheryl MacWillie said.
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more at the link above
 
KFI NEWS ‏@KFINEWS
A skull and other human bones have been found in a makeshift backyard altar in Pasadena. Cops call it "suspicious circumstances."
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Understatement!
 
A lot of religions include some type of ancestor worship. Could this be involved?

I notice that they don't say who owned the property and whether or not it was occupied at the time of the discovery.
 
A bit more info:
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Investigators say the couple that lives in the home practices a West African and Caribbean religion known as Santeria, and they are cooperating.
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http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/los_angeles&id=8996761
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"Having human bones is a little disconcerting," said Pasadena Lt. Ed Calatayud. "We respect everyone's religious right to practice. Our focus is on the bones."
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video with this one; check out those statues: http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Altar-Contains-Human-Skull-Bones-Coroner-191626461.html
 
While looking up the connection with Santeria and human bones I found an odd site:

http://www.palomayombe.net/Bones-Kiyumbas-Skulls.html

Of course the bones could have been brought with them when they moved here, hopefully not taken from anyone's grave. Still looking what the human bones and connection to god(s) is, but got distracted by this store.
 
I'm finding loads of articles from all over the U.S. with similar stories throughout the years. I will not start posting those, lol.

Another google book talking about a mythological/religious (not sure that is the right word) character using a human skull and a ram's head:

http://books.google.com/books?id=FP...BDgU#v=onepage&q=santeria human skull&f=false

Sorry, I'm just fascinated by any and all religious practices and any and all findings of bones.
 
Another store, scroll to the end for the statues:

http://www.thepumpkinandthecauldron.com/voodoosanteria.htm

I love this stuff. We had a cool store like that here for years. I just liked walking in and looking around. It burned down, so unless the owner burned it, the stuff didn't work for him. Oh, a new one opened down the street from where I live now, I haven't had the curiosity I used to have to go in. Maybe I'll get the nerve this summer.
 
21merc7 said:
While looking up the connection with Santeria and human bones I found an odd site:

http://www.palomayombe.net/Bones-Kiyumbas-Skulls.html
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That sight is freaky. Unless donating one's body is a VERY popular thing in Haiti (which I doubt) I am guessing these bones are the result of grave robbing which is a big problem in some areas.

I wouldn't mind bones donated to medical research BUT bones robbed from graves in Haiti are just WAY TOO CREEPY!

Digging up graves and stealing the coffins (to reuse or resell them) is also popular. Photo of a coffin being stolen after the earthquake, guess they just dump the body on the ground or throw it back into the open crypt.

HAITI+COFFIN.jpg
 
It's really not that far removed from the Catholic and Orthodox practice of venerating the relics (bodies, bones, bits of hair, clothing, etc) of saints. Often the relics are placed on an altar for the public to venerate. The last time we had a relic come through our church it was one of the (bloody) hand coverings of Padre Pio (recently sainted priest who bore the stigmata on his hands), and in addition to being venerated at one of the side altars, one could also have the priest give a blessing while the relic was touched to one's forehead. :D

Relics are also traditionally placed inside the altar of a church, often the patron of the parish.

I am fascinated by relics and such. They are a tangible connection to our forefathers and mothers in family and community.
 
www.luckymojo.com also sells all sorts of bones, mostly animal but some human. Other sites sell human bones too.

I doubt very much there is a crime here. I "throw bones" myself, but my set has no human bones in it, only animal bones.
 
michmi said:
I doubt very much there is a crime here. I "throw bones" myself, but my set has no human bones in it, only animal bones.
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I agree, I doubt if this involved a crime (by the practitioner using the alter). Having said that I suspect there is a GOOD chance a crime was involved before the bones were sold or changed hands.
 
Gardenlady said:
It's really not that far removed from the Catholic and Orthodox practice of venerating the relics (bodies, bones, bits of hair, clothing, etc) of saints. Often the relics are placed on an altar for the public to venerate. The last time we had a relic come through our church it was one of the (bloody) hand coverings of Padre Pio (recently sainted priest who bore the stigmata on his hands), and in addition to being venerated at one of the side altars, one could also have the priest give a blessing while the relic was touched to one's forehead. :D

Relics are also traditionally placed inside the altar of a church, often the patron of the parish.

I am fascinated by relics and such. They are a tangible connection to our forefathers and mothers in family and community.
Click to expand...
Just thought I'd add that the tradition for these practices come from the book of Acts, in which the mere passing over of the apostle's shadow or the touching of their handkerchief produced healing miracles. I found a book called Relics at goodwill once. Fascinating!
 
Currently have a third-class relic in a medal bearing the image of my namesake Saint Anthony hanging on a chain on the monitor as we speak.
 
Human Bones Found in Altar Bought on eBay (nbclosangeles.com)
Some of the bones and a skull found Sunday in a Pasadena backyard are human, the Los Angeles Coroner's Office has confirmed.

A man who left the house Monday said that his sister's family had found the bones for sale on eBay, and that she purchased them for religious reasons. The man identified himself only as Jose, declining to give his last name.
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Human skulls indeed are listed for sale on eBay. On Monday, for example, one described as suitable for dental study was listed at $710.

Jose said his sister practices Palo Mayombe, an offshoot of Santeria.
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more at the link
 
Ebay is definitely not a place I'd care to buy bones from. I don't think it should be allowed, how do you know what the origin of them is? Even with animals---I would hope the bones being sold weren't from an animal that was purposely killed for bones. That's bad ju-ju.
 
Gardenlady said:
It's really not that far removed from the Catholic and Orthodox practice of venerating the relics (bodies, bones, bits of hair, clothing, etc) of saints. Often the relics are placed on an altar for the public to venerate. The last time we had a relic come through our church it was one of the (bloody) hand coverings of Padre Pio (recently sainted priest who bore the stigmata on his hands), and in addition to being venerated at one of the side altars, one could also have the priest give a blessing while the relic was touched to one's forehead. :D

Relics are also traditionally placed inside the altar of a church, often the patron of the parish.

I am fascinated by relics and such. They are a tangible connection to our forefathers and mothers in family and community.
Click to expand...

And not only relics, but entire corpses of incorrupt (i.e., not decayed) saints. I saw the supposed corpse of St. Silvan in the cathedral in Dubrovnik, bloody gash in the throat and all. A woman and her toddler were praying before it. By the time I was there (1999), St. Silvan was surrounded by glass, but not to protect the living or prevent decay; he was boxed in to keep the candle soot from blackening his skin.

I'm told you can take a guided tour of incorrupt saints all over Italy.

Of course, if you really believe in transubstantiation, I suppose leaving corpses to lie around in churches is no big deal.

Santeria is more common in South Florida. IIRC, they took their suit for the absolute right to sacrifice animals in violation of animal-protection laws to the Supreme Court and lost.
 
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