44th BABAO 2013 Conference Abstract: Treatment of the Body Session Simon Mays Public opinion on retention and display of human remains from archaeological sites In recent years in Britain, pressure groups have become more vocal in agitating for reburial of archaeological human remains. Partly in response to this, there has been increased debate about the use of human remains for research, teaching and museum displays within the professional community. A key consideration in this debate is public opinion on such matters. Over the last two decades, numerous questionnaires and surveys have been conducted to attempt gauge public attitudes. The results of this research are scattered in the published and grey literature. The aim of this presentation is to collate these results and to attempt a meta-analysis. This exercise showed that surveys differ considerably in their methodologies, and some of the diversity in results can be understood in these terms. Nevertheless, the public appears strongly supportive, both of research and of museum displays of human remains, and such support seems to have remained stable over time. Although pressure groups that have been most vocal in agitating for reburial of skeletal remains generally feel most strongly about prehistoric burials, support for the retention of very ancient material may actually be stronger among the general public than for remains that are of more recent origin.
Posted on: Fri, 30 Aug 2013 08:21:10 +0000
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