Giving up the dead: Museums, Ethics and Human Remains in England
Whether or not it is acceptable to excavate, study, store and display human remains is a question that has been at the centre of a worldwide ethical debate for almost three decades. However, this is not as simple a question as it might first appear. Despite many years of debate there are still numerous instances where stakeholders fail to reach common ground. This research will investigate the impact of the debate, now more widely and somewhat misleadingly known as ‘the reburial issue’, and changing attitudes towards human remains upon museums in England. The main emphasis of this research are the results of a country wide investigation of museums undertaken in order to assess the impact and effectivenes of the Human Tissue Act 2004 and the Guidance for the Care of Human Remains in Museums.