{"@context":{"ex":"https://www.luigiusai.it/","hg":"https://www.luigiusai.it/hypergraph/","schema":"https://schema.org/","rdfs":"http://www.w3.org/2000/01/rdf-schema#","xsd":"http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#","dcterms":"http://purl.org/dc/terms/","skos":"http://www.w3.org/2004/02/skos/core#","doi":"https://doi.org/","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/entity/","humanSkull":"ex:HumanSkull","skullCup":"ex:SkullCup","kapala":"ex:Kapala","archaeologicalFind":"ex:ArchaeologicalFind","museumObject":"ex:MuseumObject","evidence":"ex:evidence","provenance":"ex:provenance","chronology":"ex:chronology","location":"ex:location","material":"ex:material","source":"ex:source","confidence":"ex:confidence","evidenceStatus":"ex:evidenceStatus","supports":"ex:supports","derivedFrom":"ex:derivedFrom"},"@id":"ex:GlobalSkullCupCorpus","@type":"ex:Dataset","schema:name":"Global Corpus of Human Skull Cups","schema:description":"Open structured corpus of archaeologically, historically, ethnographically and museologically documented vessels made from human cranial remains, including skull-cups, skull-bowls and kapala. The corpus distinguishes directly attested objects from archaeological interpretations and historical/ethnographic reports.","schema:creator":"ex:LuigiUsai","schema:dateCreated":"2026-09-30","schema:dateModified":"2026-09-30","schema:version":"0.2","ex:methodologicalPrinciple":"No object is classified as a physical skull-cup unless the cited evidence supports such an interpretation; depictions of skull-cups are excluded from the physical-object corpus.","ex:coverage":"Worldwide, non-exhaustive verified corpus with expanded museum and archaeological documentation"}
{"@id":"ex:GoughsCaveSkullCup1","@type":["skullCup","archaeologicalFind"],"schema:name":"Gough's Cave skull-cup CG87(190)+GC87(162)","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Gough's Cave","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom","schema:addressLocality":"Somerset, England"},"chronology":{"schema:description":"Magdalenian; approximately 14,700 cal BP","schema:temporal":"Upper Palaeolithic"},"material":["human cranial vault"],"evidenceStatus":"directlyIdentified","confidence":"high","ex:evidence":"Controlled removal of facial region, breakage of cranial base, cleaning, percussion and retouching consistent with intentional manufacture of a skull-cup.","source":["https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0017026"],"derivedFrom":"ex:BelloParfittStringer2011"}
{"@id":"ex:GoughsCaveSkullCup2","@type":["skullCup","archaeologicalFind"],"schema:name":"Gough's Cave skull-cup GC2","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Gough's Cave","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom","schema:addressLocality":"Somerset, England"},"chronology":{"schema:description":"Magdalenian; approximately 14,700 cal BP","schema:temporal":"Upper Palaeolithic"},"material":["human cranial vault"],"evidenceStatus":"directlyIdentified","confidence":"high","ex:evidence":"Cranial vault exhibiting the same intentional modification pattern associated with skull-cup production.","source":["https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0017026"],"derivedFrom":"ex:BelloParfittStringer2011"}
{"@id":"ex:GoughsCaveSkullCup3","@type":["skullCup","archaeologicalFind"],"schema:name":"Gough's Cave skull-cup GC3","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Gough's Cave","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom","schema:addressLocality":"Somerset, England"},"chronology":{"schema:description":"Magdalenian; approximately 14,700 cal BP","schema:temporal":"Upper Palaeolithic"},"material":["human cranial vault"],"individualAge":"child, approximately 3 years","evidenceStatus":"directlyIdentified","confidence":"high","ex:evidence":"Almost complete cranial vault with removal of soft tissues and deliberate breakage consistent with manufacture of a skull-cup.","source":["https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0017026"],"derivedFrom":"ex:BelloParfittStringer2011"}
{"@id":"ex:LePlacardSkullCup","@type":["skullCup","archaeologicalFind"],"schema:name":"Le Placard Cave skull-cup assemblage","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Grotte du Placard","schema:addressCountry":"France"},"chronology":{"schema:description":"Magdalenian","schema:temporal":"Upper Palaeolithic"},"material":["human cranial remains"],"evidenceStatus":"archaeologicallyReported","confidence":"medium","ex:evidence":"Cranial elements with intensive modification interpreted as skull-cup production.","source":["https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0017026"],"derivedFrom":"ex:BelloParfittStringer2011"}
{"@id":"ex:IsturitzSkullCup","@type":["skullCup","archaeologicalFind"],"schema:name":"Isturitz skull-cup assemblage","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Isturitz Cave","schema:addressCountry":"France"},"chronology":{"schema:description":"Magdalenian","schema:temporal":"Upper Palaeolithic"},"material":["human cranial remains"],"evidenceStatus":"archaeologicallyReported","confidence":"medium","ex:evidence":"Modified cranial remains interpreted as evidence of skull-cup production.","source":["https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0017026"],"derivedFrom":"ex:BelloParfittStringer2011"}
{"@id":"ex:HerxheimSkullCup","@type":["skullCup","archaeologicalFind"],"schema:name":"Herxheim skull-cup evidence","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Herxheim","schema:addressCountry":"Germany"},"chronology":{"schema:description":"Neolithic","schema:temporal":"Neolithic"},"material":["human cranium"],"evidenceStatus":"archaeologicallyReported","confidence":"medium","ex:evidence":"Modified human crania have been included in comparative archaeological literature as evidence for skull-cup production.","source":["https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5489262/"],"derivedFrom":"ex:GobekliTepeSkullCultReview"}
{"@id":"ex:GrotteDuPradelSkullCup","@type":["skullCup","archaeologicalFind"],"schema:name":"Grotte du Pradel cranial vault","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Grotte du Pradel","schema:addressCountry":"France"},"chronology":{"schema:description":"Bronze Age context reported in comparative literature","schema:temporal":"Bronze Age"},"material":["human cranial vault"],"evidenceStatus":"reportedPossible","confidence":"lowToMedium","ex:evidence":"Human cranial vault found on the contemporary ground surface surrounded by burials; interpreted in the literature as a possible skull-cup.","source":["https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0017026"],"derivedFrom":"ex:BelloParfittStringer2011"}
{"@id":"ex:NawinpukioCranialBasin","@type":["skullCup","archaeologicalFind"],"schema:name":"Nawinpukio modified cranial basin","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Nawinpukio","schema:addressCountry":"Peru","schema:addressRegion":"Ayacucho"},"chronology":{"schema:description":"Huarpa period, approximately AD 400�700","schema:temporal":"AD 400-700"},"material":["human cranium"],"evidenceStatus":"possibleVessel","confidence":"medium","ex:evidence":"Occipital and parietal bones of one cranium were modified to form a shallow basin; physical properties and archaeological/ethnographic analogy support interpretation as a vessel for liquid.","source":["https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17786998/","https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.20710"]}
{"@id":"ex:BritishMuseum18460104_1","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Kapala 1846,0104.1","schema:identifier":"1846,0104.1","provenance":"Tibet/Nepal","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"British Museum","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"19th century","material":["human bone"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://www.britishmuseum.org/sites/default/files/2019-10/British-Museum-Human-Remains_August-2010.pdf"]}
{"@id":"ex:BritishMuseum18831027_1","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Kapala 1883,1027.1","schema:identifier":"1883,1027.1","provenance":"Tibet/Nepal","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"British Museum","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"19th century","material":["human bone"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://www.britishmuseum.org/sites/default/files/2019-10/British-Museum-Human-Remains_August-2010.pdf"]}
{"@id":"ex:BritishMuseum18870518_1","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Kapala 1887,0518.1","schema:identifier":"1887,0518.1","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"British Museum","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"19th century","material":["human bone"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1887-0518-1"]}
{"@id":"ex:BritishMuseum18940310_80","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Kapala 1894,0310.80","schema:identifier":"1894,0310.80","provenance":"Tibet/Nepal","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"British Museum","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"19th century","material":["human bone"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://www.britishmuseum.org/sites/default/files/2019-10/British-Museum-Human-Remains_August-2010.pdf"]}
{"@id":"ex:BritishMuseum19261209_1","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Kapala / offering bowl 1926,1209.1","schema:identifier":"1926,1209.1","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"British Museum","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"19th century, probably","material":["human bone","bronze","turquoise"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1926-1209-1"]}
{"@id":"ex:BritishMuseum19311124_1a","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Kapala, skull-cup and stand 1931,1124.1.a","schema:identifier":"1931,1124.1.a","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"British Museum","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"19th century, probably","material":["human bone","brass"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1931-1124-1-a"]}
{"@id":"ex:BritishMuseumAs19791624a","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Tibetan skull cup As1979,16.24.a","schema:identifier":"As1979,16.24.a","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"British Museum","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"19th century, probably","material":["human bone","brass"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_As1979-16-24-a"]}
{"@id":"ex:BritishMuseum1992121470","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Kapala 1992,1214.70","schema:identifier":"1992,1214.70","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"British Museum","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"17th�18th century","material":["human bone","silver"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1992-1214-70"]}
{"@id":"ex:RubinC2004_8_1ab","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Skull Cup C2004.8.1a-b","schema:identifier":"C2004.8.1a-b","provenance":"Nepal","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"ca. 18th century","material":["human skull","metalwork"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://rubinmuseum.org/collection/c2004-8-1a-b/"]}
{"@id":"ex:AsianArtMuseumB60M6abc","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Skull cup B60M6.a-.c","schema:identifier":"B60M6.a-.c","provenance":"Dolonnor, Inner Mongolia, China","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Asian Art Museum","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"ca. 1850","material":["human skull","copper"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://searchcollection.asianart.org/objects/11297/skull-cup-kapala"]}
{"@id":"ex:LACMAM82201abc","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Ritual Skull Cup with Lid and Stand M.82.201a-c","schema:identifier":"M.82.201a-c","provenance":"Eastern Tibet, Kham, Derge (?)","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Los Angeles County Museum of Art","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"ca. 1900�1950","material":["human skull","repouss� copper","silver","brass","animal bone","turquoise"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://collections.lacma.org/object/38541"]}
{"@id":"ex:LACMAM792434ab","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Ritual Skull Cup with Lid M.79.243.4a-b","schema:identifier":"M.79.243.4a-b","provenance":"Eastern Tibet, Kham, Derge (?) or China","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Los Angeles County Museum of Art","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"18th�19th century","material":["gilt silver","silver","human skull"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://collections.lacma.org/object/36820"]}
{"@id":"ex:NelsonAtkins3423756AC","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Ceremonial Skull Cup, Cover and Stand 34-237/56 A-C","schema:identifier":"34-237/56 A-C","provenance":"Tibeto-Chinese","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"late 19th�early 20th century","material":["human skull","copper","bone","turquoise"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://art.nelson-atkins.org/objects/19371/ceremonial-skull-cap-cover-and-stand"]}
{"@id":"ex:SmithsonianE422269_0","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Skull cup made of human cranium with cover and stand","schema:identifier":"E422269-0","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Smithsonian Institution, NMNH Anthropology","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"undated; accession 1982","material":["human cranium"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","dimensions":"cup 19 x 15 x 8 cm; cover 18.5 x 15 cm; stand 9 x 15 cm","source":["https://collections.si.edu/search/results.htm?q=%22skull+cup%22"]}
{"@id":"ex:NationalMuseumsLiverpool548594","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Skull Cup / Todpa 54.85.94","schema:identifier":"54.85.94","provenance":"Keylong, Lahaul and Spiti, Himachal Pradesh, India; recorded historically as Kyelang, West Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"National Museums Liverpool","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"pre-1933","material":["human skull"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://images.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/2022-01/Human-Remains-%202022%20-%20all%20records%20-%20as%20at%2027-01-2022.pdf"]}
{"@id":"ex:VMFA8534","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Ritual Skull Cup (Kapala) 85.34","schema:identifier":"85.34","provenance":"Nepalese","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Virginia Museum of Fine Arts","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"1767","material":["gilded copper alloy"],"evidenceStatus":"cataloguedAsSkullCup","confidence":"medium","ex:note":"The museum catalogues the object as Ritual Skull Cup (Kapala), but the published medium field does not explicitly state that the physical cup itself retains human cranial bone; therefore it is kept distinct from confirmed human-skull objects.","source":["https://vmfa.museum/piction/6027262-208052035/"]}
{"@id":"ex:TibetanHouseholdEAP12212021","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Thod pa / ka pa li, EAP1221/20/2/1","schema:identifier":"EAP1221/20/2/1","provenance":"Spiti, India","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Thukten Chhoezang household archive","schema:addressCountry":"India"},"chronology":"late 19th century","material":["human skull"],"evidenceStatus":"archivallyDocumented","confidence":"high","dimensions":"15.5 x 13 x 6 cm","ex:evidence":"Archive catalogue explicitly identifies one human skull cup or ka pa li, kept in the prayer room.","source":["https://searcharchives.bl.uk/catalog/040-004549280"]}
{"@id":"ex:CuevaDeElToroSkullCup","@type":["skullCup","archaeologicalFind"],"schema:name":"Cueva de El Toro skull-cup","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Cueva de El Toro","schema:addressCountry":"Spain","schema:addressRegion":"Málaga"},"chronology":{"schema:description":"Early Neolithic; approximately 5040-4850 cal BC (6060 ± 30 cal BP)","schema:temporal":"Early Neolithic"},"material":["human cranium"],"evidenceStatus":"directlyIdentified","confidence":"high","ex:evidence":"Skull-cup processed by careful paring away of skin, fragmentation of facial skeleton and base of skull, controlled percussion of edges. Boiled in container causing pot polish. Direct AMS radiocarbon dating.","source":["https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30802307/","https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.23967"]}
{"@id":"ex:MarmolesCaveSkullCup","@type":["skullCup","archaeologicalFind"],"schema:name":"Mármoles cave skull-cup","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Cueva de Mármoles","schema:addressCountry":"Spain","schema:addressRegion":"Córdoba"},"chronology":{"schema:description":"Neolithic to Early Bronze Age; 5th to 2nd millennium BC","schema:temporal":"Neolithic to Bronze Age"},"material":["human cranium"],"evidenceStatus":"archaeologicallyReported","confidence":"medium","ex:evidence":"Drinking cup crafted from human skull discovered among prehistoric burials. Shows signs of deliberate fracturing and scraping.","source":["https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/cup-crafted-from-prehistoric-human-skull-discovered-in-cave-in-spain"]}
{"@id":"ex:ScienceMuseumA4508","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Bowl made from top of human skull A4508","schema:identifier":"A4508","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Science Museum Group","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"date uncertain","material":["human bone","copper"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","dimensions":"three copper wire feet","source":["https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co122898/bowl-made-from-top-of-human-skull"]}
{"@id":"ex:ScienceMuseumA6206","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Skull bowl with copper and gold lid and stand A6206","schema:identifier":"A6206","provenance":"Nepal","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Science Museum Group","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"19th century (1801-1900)","material":["human bone","brass","copper","gold","turquoise"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","dimensions":"overall: height 268 mm; bowl: width 139 mm, length 226 mm","source":["https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co122947/skull-bowl-with-copper-and-gold-lid-and-stand"]}
{"@id":"ex:ScienceMuseumA18944","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Skull bowl with brass lid and stand A18944","schema:identifier":"A18944","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Science Museum Group","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"19th century (1800-1900)","material":["human bone","brass"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co122537/skull-bowl"]}
{"@id":"ex:ScienceMuseumA175061","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Top of skull decoratively mounted in copper A175061/1","schema:identifier":"A175061/1","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Science Museum Group","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"19th century (1801-1900)","material":["human bone","copper"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","ex:evidence":"Used in Tantric rites","source":["https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co8392417/top-of-skull-decoratively-mounted-in-copper"]}
{"@id":"ex:ScienceMuseumA639063","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Skull bowl with lid and stand A639063","schema:identifier":"A639063","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Science Museum Group","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"19th century (1801-1900)","material":["human bone","brass","copper"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","dimensions":"overall: height 276 mm; bowl: width 145 mm, length 175 mm; stand: width 162 mm, length 156 mm","source":["https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co125281/skull-bowl-with-lid-and-stand"]}
{"@id":"ex:PennMuseumA1435","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Kapala skull bowl with base and lid A1435","schema:identifier":"A1435.1, A1435.3","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Penn Museum","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"19th century","material":["human bone","copper alloy","coral","turquoise","bronze","brass"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","dimensions":"height 13-14.5 cm, length 18-19.5 cm, width 18-19.5 cm","ex:evidence":"Brass-lined human skull on triangular metal base. Cover decorated with demon figures, Sanskrit characters, coral and turquoise.","source":["https://collections.penn.museum/collections/object/517374","https://collections.penn.museum/collections/object/291840"]}
{"@id":"ex:CambridgeMAAKapala","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Kapala skull cup - Cambridge MAA","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Cambridge","schema:addressCountry":"United Kingdom"},"chronology":"documented 1905","material":["human bone"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","ex:evidence":"Two drinking bowls made from human skulls. Label reads: 'Used by devil worshippers (\"bonpas\") of Tibet to drink blood. 1905'. Exterior varnished, interior dark.","source":["https://collections.maa.cam.ac.uk/objects/565912/"]}
{"@id":"ex:Peabody37131602974","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Skull cup 37-131-60/2974","schema:identifier":"37-131-60/2974","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Peabody Museum, Harvard University","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"undated","material":["human bone"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","dimensions":"6.6 x 18.2 x 14.5 cm","ex:evidence":"New skull cup, apparently never used unless for drinking from. Worked top half of human skull. From Chamdo, eastern Tibet border, Szechuan Province.","source":["https://collections.peabody.harvard.edu/objects/details/95118"]}
{"@id":"ex:Peabody37131602975","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Human skull cup 37-131-60/2975","schema:identifier":"37-131-60/2975","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Peabody Museum, Harvard University","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"undated","material":["human bone"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://collections.peabody.harvard.edu/objects/details/300036"]}
{"@id":"ex:Peabody337160367","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Human skull cup - used for drinking water 33-71-60/367","schema:identifier":"33-71-60/367","provenance":"Tibet, Kham","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Peabody Museum, Harvard University","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"undated","material":["human bone"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","dimensions":"8.5 x 18 x 13.4 cm","ex:evidence":"Used for drinking water and for ceremonial purposes in sacred ceremonies. Worked half of human cranium.","source":["https://collections.peabody.harvard.edu/objects/details/95045"]}
{"@id":"ex:Peabody295320C10909","@type":["skullCup","archaeologicalFind"],"schema:name":"Skull cup 29-53-20/C10909","schema:identifier":"29-53-20/C10909","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Baking Pot, Belize","schema:addressCountry":"Belize","schema:addressRegion":"Cayo"},"chronology":{"schema:description":"Maya period","schema:temporal":"Pre-Columbian"},"material":["human bone"],"evidenceStatus":"archaeologicallyReported","confidence":"medium","dimensions":"11 x 10.7 x 3.4 cm","ex:evidence":"Bone, human, skull, bowl, left parietal, smoothed edges, wear facets on base, shallow dish, repaired. From Mound G at Baking Pot site.","source":["https://collections.peabody.harvard.edu/objects/details/365210"]}
{"@id":"ex:SmithsonianS201742ah","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Kapala (skull bowl) S2017.42a-h","schema:identifier":"S2017.42a-h","provenance":"Eastern Tibet or Mongolia","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"19th century","material":["human skull","gilded copper","turquoise","coral"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","dimensions":"H x Diam: 22.9 x 15.2 cm (9 x 6 in)","source":["https://www.si.edu/object/fsg_S2017.42a-h"]}
{"@id":"ex:RubinC20111311ab","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Skull cup with Base C2011.13.11a-b","schema:identifier":"C2011.13.11a-b","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"18th-20th century","material":["human bone","silver","turquoise","coral","brass alloy"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","dimensions":"2 3/8 × 7 1/4 × 5 3/4 in","source":["https://rubinmuseum.org/collection/c2011-13-11a-b/"]}
{"@id":"ex:PhiladelphiaMuseumKapala","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Skull Cup (Kapala) and Lid","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Philadelphia Museum of Art","schema:addressCountry":"United States"},"chronology":"19th century","material":["human bone"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","source":["https://philamuseum.org/collection/object/41728"]}
{"@id":"ex:BerlinEthnologischesMuseum10464","@type":["skullCup","kapala","museumObject"],"schema:name":"Metallständer mit Knochenschale und Metalldeckel I D 10464","schema:identifier":"I D 10464","provenance":"Tibet","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Ethnologisches Museum, Berlin","schema:addressCountry":"Germany"},"chronology":"undated","material":["human bone","brass"],"evidenceStatus":"museumCatalogued","confidence":"high","ex:evidence":"Kapala with brass stand, human calotte, and brass lid. Used as blood cup for offerings to wrathful deities. Sanskrit inscription.","source":["https://search.smb.museum/object/obj-144306"]}
{"@id":"ex:Peabody28120C10592","@type":["skullCup","archaeologicalFind"],"schema:name":"Incense burner and cover made from human skull 28-1-20/C10592","schema:identifier":"28-1-20/C10592","location":{"@type":"schema:Place","schema:name":"Chichen Itza","schema:addressCountry":"Mexico"},"chronology":{"schema:description":"Maya Postclassic","schema:temporal":"AD 900-1500"},"material":["human bone"],"evidenceStatus":"archaeologicallyReported","confidence":"medium","ex:evidence":"Incense burner and cover made from human skull; Homo sapiens sapiens","source":["https://collections.peabody.harvard.edu/objects/details/300036"]}
{"@id":"ex:GlobalKapalaTradition","@type":"skos:Concept","skos:prefLabel":"Kapala / human skull cup","skos:altLabel":["skull cup","skull bowl","skull vessel","human cranial cup","ka pa la","thod pa"],"skos:definition":"A vessel formed wholly or partly from a human cranial vault, especially within tantric Himalayan ritual traditions, or archaeologically interpreted as such.","ex:distinction":"The term kapala may also be represented iconographically or applied to symbolic vessels that do not retain human bone; such representations are excluded from the physical-object corpus unless the object itself is documented as human cranial material."}
{"@id":"ex:CorpusEvidenceHierarchy","@type":"skos:ConceptScheme","skos:prefLabel":"Skull-cup evidence hierarchy","skos:hasTopConcept":["ex:DirectlyIdentified","ex:MuseumCatalogued","ex:ArchaeologicallyReported","ex:PossibleVessel","ex:HistoricalEthnographicReport","ex:IconographicOnly"],"ex:DirectlyIdentified":"Physical human cranial modification demonstrably produces a cup or vessel.","ex:MuseumCatalogued":"A museum or archival catalogue explicitly identifies the physical object as a skull cup/kapala and identifies human skull/bone.","ex:ArchaeologicallyReported":"Published archaeological interpretation supports skull-cup production but the individual object catalogue is incomplete.","ex:PossibleVessel":"Modified cranial element has morphology consistent with vessel use but interpretation remains inferential.","ex:HistoricalEthnographicReport":"Historical or ethnographic documentation reports skull use as vessels without a surviving individually catalogued object.","ex:IconographicOnly":"A depiction of a skull cup; excluded from the physical-object corpus."}
{"@id":"ex:BelloParfittStringer2011","@type":"schema:ScholarlyArticle","schema:name":"Earliest Directly-Dated Human Skull-Cups","schema:author":["Silvia M. Bello","Simon A. Parfitt","Chris B. Stringer"],"schema:datePublished":"2011","schema:identifier":"https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0017026","schema:about":"Human skull-cups at Gough's Cave and comparative archaeological/ethnographic evidence","source":"https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3040189/"}
{"@id":"ex:Finucane2008","@type":"schema:ScholarlyArticle","schema:name":"Trophy heads from Nawinpukio, Per�: physical and chemical analysis of Huarpa-era modified human remains","schema:author":"Brian Clifton Finucane","schema:datePublished":"2008","schema:identifier":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.20710","source":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17786998/"}
{"@id":"ex:GobekliTepeSkullCultReview","@type":"schema:ScholarlyArticle","schema:name":"Modified human crania from G�bekli Tepe provide evidence for a new form of Neolithic skull cult","schema:about":"Comparative table of archaeological skull modification including skull-cup evidence from Gough's Cave, Le Placard, Isturitz and Herxheim","source":"https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5489262/"}
{"@id":"ex:EthnographicHistoricalSkullCupTraditions","@type":"ex:HistoricalEthnographicEvidence","schema:name":"Historical and ethnographic skull-cup traditions","ex:regions":["India","Tibet","Nepal","Australia","Fiji","Oceania","China","Scythian world"],"ex:status":"reportedInScholarlyLiterature","ex:note":"These records document traditions or historical reports rather than individually identifiable surviving objects and therefore must not be merged numerically with the museum-object count.","source":["https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3040189/"]}
{"@id":"ex:SkullCupCorpusMethodology","@type":"ex:MethodologicalProtocol","schema:name":"Global skull-cup corpus inclusion protocol","ex:rule1":"Require explicit human cranial material for confirmed physical-object status.","ex:rule2":"Separate archaeological specimens from museum objects.","ex:rule3":"Separate possible cranial vessels from securely identified skull-cups.","ex:rule4":"Do not count iconographic depictions as physical skull-cups.","ex:rule5":"Preserve original museum accession numbers.","ex:rule6":"Preserve source URLs and publication identifiers.","ex:rule7":"Do not infer geographic origin from current museum location.","ex:rule8":"Do not infer ritual function solely from the presence of a human skull.","ex:rule9":"When multiple sources refer to the same accession number, merge them rather than counting duplicates.","ex:rule10":"Maintain uncertainty explicitly rather than converting interpretation into fact."}