num_pages: 180
description: The British Museum holds approximately 6,000 human remains, the majority of which were recovered in the past century. Regarding the Dead addresses the British Museum’s approach to the ethical issues surrounding the inclusion of human remains in the Museum’s collection and presents solutions to the dilemmas relating to their curation, storage, access management and display.The holding of human remains in museums has long been a matter of academic and public discourse. The issues surrounding the rightful ownership, proper care, research and display of human remains are strongly debated, both within the museums and heritage sector and in the media on an international scale. Using case studies from the British Museum, Regarding the Dead examines these issues and explains how the availability of human remains for study has many benefits. Human remains provide the most direct and insightful sources of information on different cultural approaches to death, burial practices and belief systems. Their study also helps to advance important research concerning the history of disease, changing epidemiological patterns, forensics and human biology. The book draws together diverse strands of research concerning human remains and reflects the great variety of challenges and discoveries associated with this work as well as the sensitivities involved.Table of ContentsPrefacePart One – Holding and Displaying Human RemainsIntroduction	Simon MaysCurating Human Remains in Museum Broader Considerations and a British Museum PerspectiveDaniel AntoineLooking Death in the Different Attitudes towards Bog Bodies and their Display with a Focus on Lindow ManJody JoyThe Scientific Analysis of Human Remains from the British Museum Research Potential and Examples from the Nile ValleyDaniel Antoine and Janet AmbersPart Two – Caring For, Conserving and Storing Human RemainsIntroduction	Gaye SculthorpeAncestral Remains from Histories and Relationships in the Collection of the British MuseumNatasha McKinneyCollection Handling, Storing and Transporting Human RemainsDaniel Antoine and Emily TaylorConservation of Human Remains from Archaeological ContextsBarbara Wills, Clare Ward and Vanessa Sáiz Gómez with contributions by Capucine Korenberg and Julianne PhippardPart Three – Researching the British Museum CollectionIntroduction	Clark Spencer LarsenOld Bones New Evidence for Funerary Practices from the Sasanian EmpireSt John Simpson and Theya MollesonBeneath the Imaging Techniques and the Jericho SkullAlexandra Fletcher, Jessica Pearson, Theya Molleson, Richard Abel, Janet Ambers and Crispin WilesThe Collection of Egyptian Mummies in the British Overview and Potential for StudyJohn H.TaylorThe Human Remains from Tell es-Sa‘ International Custodianship, Respect and ResearchJonathan Tubb and Caroline CartwrightThe Bioarchaeology of Amara West in Investigating the Impacts of Political, Cultural and Environmental Change on Health and DietMichaela Binder and Neal SpencerContributors	Index
language: English
title: Regarding the Dead: Human Remains in the British Museum
publisher: British Museum