Regarding your article on “overseas” human remains in British museums (Vast scale of overseas human remains held in UK museums decried by MPs and experts, 7 March), while the public may be surprised, the issue of human remains in museums has been central to archaeologists, anthropologists and museum professionals for decades. The question for us is not whether it is acceptable that human remains can be found in “sacrilegious” conditions (clearly not), but how can we best care for human remains in museum collections? What we find both counterproductive and incorrect is the suggestion that collection managers and museums are unmoved by the ethical challenges posed by the remains in their care.
We recently concluded a large research project examining the ethical treatment of human remains in European institutions. Our survey clearly shows that collection managers, often with very scarce resources, are deeply concerned with the human remains in their care, and overwhelmingly demonstrate empathy and concern for them. Moreover, human remains from colonial contexts tend to receive more, not less, ethical attention than human remains from local or archaeological contexts.
In some cases “good care” will mean repatriation to communities of origin. However, many human remains in museums cannot be repatriated (for example, because they are from domestic archaeological contexts, medical collections, or no descending group claims them). It is important that we also develop ethical care practices for the human remains in these often ignored categories.
Several MPs expressed their outrage at the situation. However, far greater power to address the legacy of centuries of colonialism rests with them as elected officials of the state, than with individual museums. We suggest that the government financially supports the task of caring ethically for human remains, instead of undermining the fragile relationships of trust and cooperation built between institutions and stakeholders over recent decades.
Prof Liv Nilsson Stutz Linnaeus University, Sweden
Prof Sarah Tarlow University of Leicester, UK
