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To Make Dead Bodies Talk:
Bio-archaeological heritage – historical human remains and their academic, social
and religious contexts
CEU 20th Anniversary Postdoctoral Fellowship
Department of Medieval Studies
Introduction
At the core of human existence, the bio-archaeological heritage in the form of
historical human remains can be considered a repository of knowledge about the ways
people interact with both the natural and socially constructed world. Thus, the dead make
their presence felt in a variety of academic, religious, ethical and social contexts, all of
which have their justifications and contradictions. Human bodies and the manner in
which they were treated during life and after death are source material in physical
anthropology as well as a challenge for scholars and the societies they operate in.
Physical anthropological research and policies toward the bio-archaeological heritage
themselves embody a variety of social and religious implications. Information gleaned
about the human condition from our dead ancestors must be weighed against serious
nonacademic factors in a changing world. Modern concepts of respect for the dead
impact the research practices of scholars and the management of heritage institutions.
Despite the importance of these issues, a critical over-review of physical
anthropology has never been attempted, especially in light of more recent developments
in the field (such as DNA and heavy isotope sampling). The impact of such results on
long-held traditional historical interpretations is also a major issue. When such biological
data is rigorously interpreted within its cultural-historical context it can sometimes be at
the expense of dear and long-held beliefs. The aim of the proposed interdisciplinary
research project is to compare the policy and heritage issues arising when the search for
knowledge sits uncomfortably with what society regards as right and good. The project is
based on a network of physical anthropologists, bio-ethics experts, religious studies
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scholars and heritage specialists. It goals include compiling results from academic
research, policy protocols, legal regulations, research protocols and guidelines to develop
a repository for working out best-practice reference materials.
State of the Art
Since the fifties of the twentieth century, archaeological excavations in cemeteries
and therefore of human remains has become more and more common in Europe and
beyond. As a consequence, methods for studying human bones have become increasingly
sophisticated, particularly in the last decade with the introduction of isotope and DNA
analyses. These methods offer great potential for a better understanding of issues such as
diet, nutrition, diseases, mortality patterns, kinship and migration. In addition, laws
regulating the excavation, the handling and the preservation of human remains have
become politically significant. Religious and tribal groups have had their say in this
process since they feel it directly involves their people (Brothwell, 2011). As a result,
lively debates are on-going and in different countries (such as USA and UK) reburial of
bones some time after the excavation (two years) was imposed by law. In this way, the
dead body is preserved in its religious integrity but human bones as a significant source
for studying the past are destroyed, because reburial in a new environment accelerates
decay, whereas museum curation and conservation inhibits further decay. It has been said
that these regulations and recent debates arose out of the lack of communication on the
side of physical anthropologists and, more generally, gaps in the educational system
resulting in a failure to explain to the public at large the values of studying such sources
(Nickels, 2010).
However, different countries within and outside Europe display varied attitudes
towards ancient human remains, a primary and relevant matter of concern is whether
they should be perceived as objects or as humans. In some cases, for instance Albania,
Spain and Armenia, human remains are treated by law as archaeological finds. As a
consequence, on the one hand, they are stored and preserved in museums in the same way
as other finds, but on the other hand, physical anthropologists are not mandatorily present
during excavation and human bones are not always properly excavated or studied. In
contrast, human remains in Great Britain fall under the Burial Act ‒ issued in 1857 and
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later revised ‒ according to which whatever their chronology, they should be reburied
within two years after their excavation (Sayer, 2010). In Bosia-Herzegovina, the
chronological period 1500-1600 AD represents the cut-off point for permitting skeletal
data to be included within the category of archaeological artifacts (Zukanović, Sarajlić
and Škulj, 2011). In Muslim countries, a ritualized reburial of bones immediately after
excavation is mandatory, preventing any further study (for the case of Azerbaijan, see
Maynard and Museybli, 2011). In Bulgaria, different attitudes are accepted and followed:
bones can be investigated and stored in museums, or reburied after a certain period, or
reburied immediately after excavation. At another extreme from these attitudes, there is
an ongoing debate in Belgium on how should human remains be handled when found, for
instance, on private property. By law, the owner of a piece of land is also the owner of
what lies beneath it. Therefore, because human bones are considered objects they become
property of the owner of the land. Human bones, together with archaeological finds fall
usually under the category of “treasure”. This means that the owner has to preserve the
finds, prevent their decay and is not allow to sell them. However, this does not prevent
the black market sale of artifacts and human bones (Quintelier, 2011).
These variable legal and ethical attitudes towards human bones are determined by
the various legal, religious and cultural traditions found in different regions. They reflect
different approaches towards the dead, the past and the cultural heritage. It is only very
recently that debates in some countries over the nature of ancient human bones and their
meaning in reconstructing the past were raised (they have been particularly lively in
England and the USA). The international debate is still in its infancy.
Moreover, research methods applied to the study of human bones vary from region
to region even within Europe. The numerous disciplines involved (such as physical
anthropology, genetics, chemistry, demographic studies etc.) have just begun to consider
each others results and become familiar with their methodological differences.
Possibilities for cooperation and developing questions of common interest are only now
starting to be explored.
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Aim of the project
Geographical framework
The project aims at acknowledging various attitudes towards human remains in
different countries in Europe (understood as a geographical entity) and around the
Mediterranean Sea, chosen as sample areas. Trends noticed here will be also compared
more generally with the situation in the USA and Asia.
Goals
The particular goal will be to understand how four particular aspects interact in
shaping different attitudes towards skeletal data: 1) culture and religion, 2) secularization
and legal systems, 3) science and academia 4) cultural heritage.
1.
Various religions and cultural background brought different attitudes towards the
dead after the end of the Roman world. In particular, Jewish, Muslim and Christian
approaches significantly differ in the way dead bodies should be treated and this
influences the ways ancient human dead bodies are to be handled in the present day. The
project will aim at considering how these different approaches towards the dead
developed around Europe, particularly during the Early Middle Ages and how they
evolved and change in subsequent periods.
2.
Different secularization processes in modern states meant different kinds of
interaction between legal systems and religious and cultural traditions. This resulted in a
variety of regulations regarding burial, exhumation and treatment of dead bodies within a
legal framework. Thus, depending on the region, ancient human remains, as a
combination of these different factors (culture, religion, secularization and legal system),
fall under the category of “archaeological objects” or “human remains”. However, these
variant approaches strongly impact the ways anthropological research can be performed
on the data and, thus, the scientific information which can be extrapolated from ancient
skeletons.
3.
Because human skeletal remains are unique sources for studying past populations,
particularly now that new and sophisticated methods of analyses are widely available,
scientists approach past remains differently from the public at large, legal experts and
religious authorities, and this can prove a source of conflict, as shown by the recent
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debates in the USA concerning reburial of Native American skeletons. From an academic
perspective, re-burial represents loss of important information. Moreover, certain ways of
handling human skeletons can obstruct future analyses. For instance, DNA analyses
become impossible if the human bones have already been handled and, thus,
contaminated by archaeologists and anthropologists. However, as opposed to
archaeological sites, human bones can be analysed again and again. Samples for chemical
analyses can also be taken for skeletons excavated long ago. For this reason, scientists
believe that destroying such a resource will prove an obstacle for future research and the
application of constantly and fast developing techniques.
An example of the changing of methods and interest in human skeletal remains is
represented by the twentieth century history of physical anthropology. From the end of
the nineteenth century until the 70s of the twentieth century, the main concern of physical
anthropology was anthropometry (the identification of human groups through bone
measurements), while in the last decades the main interest has been geared towards
understanding causes of death, health conditions and standards of living.
4.
The concept of cultural heritage was developed during the twentieth century, and
it was first adopted as a way of protecting our cultural patrimony during times of war and
colonization. After the Second World War each country developed its own legislation for
protecting the national cultural patrimony (Barbati, Cammelli, Sciullo, 2003). The
strategies of cultural heritage protection derive from the national legal system but are also
influenced by the scientific community and take into account cultural and religious
backgrounds. Cultural Heritage is therefore the terrain of interaction between the three
dimensions of culture, religion, secularization and legal system described above .
Chronological context
1.The project will consider the contemporary period. Approaches towards human
remains will be considered in the selected sample area, as described above.
2. In addition, the medieval period (from the 4th until the 16th centuries AD) will be
also taken into consideration on the one hand in order to reveal how different approaches
towards dead bodies developed after the end of the Roman world, under the influence of
three main religions (Jewish, Christian and Muslim) in Europe and the Mediterranean; on
the other hand, cemeteries dated to the Middle Ages will be considered as case studies to
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understand the approaches of coeval people to the treatment of the bodies they contain.
More specifically, the choice to consider this broad historical period compared to the
contemporary is justified for a number of reasons: a) The early medieval period is
archaeologically best understood from cemeteries, which were and still are, very much in
the focus of archaeological research. This is partly due to the fact that the elegant goods
of wealthy individuals were deposited in graves, which attracted the interest of
archaeologists and the greater public, and partly due to the fact that early medieval
settlements were difficult to find, especially in the past when archeological excavation
techniques were not so developed. Because of the relevance of cemeteries within the
discipline of early medieval studies, lively methodological debates are on-going on how
should cemeteries be interpreted and their potential. b) The early medieval period is also
very suitable for testing the potentials of bio-archaeology, not only because of the
copious number of excavated cemeteries, but also because of the lack of written sources,
which makes archaeological data particularly relevant for understanding a variety of
socio/political aspects, which otherwise would remain unexplored. c) More generally, the
Middle Ages represent a very suitable period for discussing ethical issues related to the
treatment of human remains, because, on the one hand, it occupies a temporal position
between contemporary and societies of the ancient past. It is therefore a more distant
period, in which ancient bones are just old enough not to be directly linked to
contemporary family groups who may feel compelled to reclaim their ancestors. On the
other hand, the Middle Ages, and particularly the Early Middle Ages, are perceived as the
period when the process of nation-building started (Pohl, 2000; Geray, 2002). Thus,
medieval people are perceived as being the ancestors of modern nations so a special
interest developed from the end of the nineteenth century concerning early medieval and
medieval cemeteries. d) Moreover, the Middle Ages are a relevant period of
transformation particularly because Christianity, Judaism and Muslim developed and
consolidated in the Mediterranean region at this time. These religions promoted different
approaches towards death, dying, and dead bodies, which still influence perceptions
nowadays. The way bodies were treated during this historical period and how religion
influenced cemetery regulations will be taken into consideration as a way of
understanding the starting point of our contemporary regulations. e) The medieval period
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conventionally covers a time span from the 4th to the 14th centuries and is therefore of
long enough duration to permit chronological changes to be observed.
Research methods and sources
In order to clarify the above-mentioned points of view (culture, religion,
secularization and legal system) within the frame of the two historical dimensions
described above, different types of sources will be taken into consideration:
Contemporary period:
1.
The project will collect and compare legal regulations (which are issued and
controlled by the state), policy protocols and procedures (which are not necessarily
controlled by the state) in different regions and will place them in their cultural and
religious framework. The aim will be to shed light on the historical background of these
varying approaches towards human remains.
2.
In addition, different methods of studying human bones developed in individual
countries will be also taken into consideration together with the generated results. We
will try to understand the extent to which the types of studies performed on the bones and
the methods employed are influenced by ethical attitudes and legal regulations.
Medieval period:
Three main aspects in particular will be considered from this period:
1.
Selection of case studies related to cemetery excavation, study and preservation in
bio-archaeological perspective in different countries. This will allow investigation into
how skeletal data is excavated, treated and studied nowadays and the impact it has on
academic research and the public at large.
2.
Religious regulations and civil laws aimed at regulating treatment of the dead
developed under Christian, Jewish and Muslim influence during the medieval period will
be studied as will the way these changed over the centuries. Clarifying the role of religion
in the treatment of dead bodies should give us an understanding of the basis for the
differences in the way human remains are approached in different parts of Europe.
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3.
Visual material representing dead bodies and how and what contexts they were dealt
with by the living will be examined. This should give ups a window onto past ethical
attitudes towards human remains in harmony or even against normative prescriptions.
Team and research network
The team will include the following people:
Archaeologists:
Irene Barbiera: archaeologist of the early middle ages, specialized in funerary
archaeology and historical demography based on human bones. She will be granted the
fellowship and will carry out the research project.
József Laszlovszky: archaeologist, CEU, Department of Medieval Studies. He will
supervise the project.
Alice Choyke: bio-archaeologist, CEU, Department of Medieval Studies.
Physical anthropologists:
Papp Ildikó: Director of the Department of Anthropology, Hungarian Natural History
Museum.
Pálfy György, Head of Department of Anthropology, University of Szeged.
Orsolya László: Biologist, paleopathologist, Field Service for Hungarian Cultural
Heritage.
Historians
Katalin Szende: medieval history, CEU, Department of Medieval Studies.
Gerhard Jaritz: history of visual culture, CEU, Department of medieval studies and
Institut fur Realienkunde, Austrian Academy of Sciences.
Legal experts:
Judit Sándor: lawyer, CEU, CELAB (Center for Ethics and Law in Biomedicine)
Daniel Ziemann, expert on canon law, CEU, Department of Medieval Studies.
Religious issues experts:
Carsten Wilke: Religious studies, CEU
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This group, resident in Budapest, will regularly meet and discuss the development
of the project (the first kickoff meeting is planned for the first week of October 2011).
In addition to the team, there is also an international network of scholars and
experts who will be involved in discussing a number of the aspects considered in the
project ranging from methodological matters, historical and cultural points of view, to
cultural heritage protection and legislation.
Expected outcomes of the project
The planned outcomes are as follows:
1. A Web-page, including a data base of sources relevant to the project. This webpage should prove to be a very useful open tool for those interested in the topic.
The web-page will be in a Wiki-style, allowing partners to add data and actively
discuss the relevant issues for the project. The documents stored in the planned
database will be a useful reference for researchers who have to face problematic
situations when dealing with bio-archaeological materials. The web page will
be stored at the following page, where we already started storing data
concerning the project: https://medievalstudies.ceu.hu/projects/ceu-20thanniversary-postdoctoral-fellowship-to-make-dead-bodies-talk.
2. A Workshop will be organized at the end of the first year to which all the
different members of the team and scholars from the network of researchers
will be invited.
3. A Summer University on bio-archaeological perspectives will be organized at
the end of the project, involving team members and inviting researchers from
the contact network.
4. A volume, resulting from the workshop will be edited.
5. Moreover, from its inception, the project is intended to have an impact on the
education of students at the CEU. PhD students dealing with topics related to
the project will, on a one hand, be invited to actively contribute to the debate,
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on the other hand they will benefit from the materials and outcomes produced
by the research.
Relevant Bibliography
C. Barbanti, M. Cammelli, G. Sciullo, Il diritto dei beni culturali. Bologna: il
Mulino, 2006.
J. E. Buikstra, L.A. Beck, Bioarchaeology: the contextual analyses of human
remains, Amsterdam, London and New York: Elsevier, 2006.
M. Littlel, R. Sussman, “History of biological anthropology”, in A Companion to
Biological Anthropology, ed. by C.S. Larsen. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2010, pp. 13-38.
M.K. Nickels, “Science Education and Physical anthropology”, in A Companion to
Biological Anthropology, ed. by C.S. Larsen. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2010, pp. 547561.
M. Parker Pearson, The Archaeology of Death and Burial, Thrupp: Sutton
Publishing, 1999.
The Routledge Handbook of Archaeological Human Remains and Legislation: An
International Guide to Laws and Practice in the Excavation and Treatment of
Archaeological Human Remains, ed. by N. Marquez-Grant and L. Fibiger. New York:
Routledge, 2011.
D. Sayer, Ethics and Burial Archaology. London: Duckworth, 2010.
G. W. Stocking Jr., “Bones, bodies, behaviour”, in: Bones, Bodies, Behaviour.
Essays on Biological Anthropology, ed. by G. W. Stocking. Wisconsin 1988, pp. 3-17.
S. Troilo, La patria e la memoria. Tutela e patrimonio culturale nell’Italia unita.
Milano: Mondadori Electa, 2005.