Resolving the Human Remains Crisis in British Archaeology

Mike Parker Pearson ,Tim Schadla‐Hall ,Gabe Moshenska

doi:10.5334/pia.369

Mike Parker Pearson , Tim Schadla‐Hall + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.5334/pia.369

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Abstract

Human remains are a fundamental part of the archaeological record, offering unique insights into the lives of individuals and populations in the past. Like many archaeological materials human remains require distinctive and specialised methods of recovery, analysis and interpretation, while technological innovations and the accumulation of expertise have enabled archaeologists to extract ever greater amounts of information from assemblages of skeletal material. Alongside analyses of new finds, these advances have consistently thrown new light on existing collections of human remains in museums, universities and other institutions. Given the powerful emotional, social and religious meanings attached to the dead body, it is perhaps unsurprising that human remains pose a distinctive set of ethical questions for archaeologists.

Highlights

Human remains are a fundamental part of the archaeological record, offering unique insights into the lives of individuals and populations in the past
The events described in this article highlight a number of problems that should give all archaeologists cause for concern
The weaknesses and contradictions in the legal frameworks that govern archaeology are shocking in many respects, and cannot remain unresolved; archaeologists are pulled hither and thither by property law and planning law, while human remains exist in a peculiar legal limbo in that they cannot technically be owned

Summary

Introduction

Human remains are a fundamental part of the archaeological record, offering unique insights into the lives of individuals and populations in the past. Like many archaeological materials human remains require distinctive and specialised methods of recovery, analysis and interpretation, while technological innovations and the accumulation of expertise have enabled archaeologists to extract ever greater amounts of information from assemblages of skeletal material. Alongside analyses of new finds, these advances have consistently thrown new light on existing collections of human remains in museums, universities and other institutions. Social and religious meanings attached to the dead body, it is perhaps unsurprising that human remains pose a distinctive set of ethical questions for archaeologists. It became increasingly clear that many human remains in museum collections around the world represented the traces of colonial exploitation and discredited pseudo-scientific theories of race.

The Emergence of Compulsory Reburial

The Change in MoJ Policy

Discussion