Museum policy on human remains

The Museum of London holds in its archive approximately 17,000 human skeletons from archaeological excavations in Greater London.

Provenance

Almost all of these were excavated under, and are covered by, Home Office (now Department of Constitutional Affairs) licenses that allow for their study and research and then, when appropriate, reburial. In addition 65 skeletons or parts of skeletons are accessioned into the core collections.

Human remains within the Museum collections are cared for by the Department of Early London History and Collections and are the specific responsibility of the Senior Curator of Human Osteology.

Ethics & research

There is an ongoing debate as to the ethics of excavating, holding and displaying human skeletons by museums. This is a complex and multi-layered debate, influenced by concerns of Indigenous peoples in other countries; the multi-cultural nature of modern society; as well as modern religious and humanist philosophies, medical ethics and museological concerns.

In addition, it is recognised that human remains have a very high research value and can make a major contribution. The Museum of London wishes to fully engage with this debate and to ensure that it is collecting, researching and curating human remains in a way that maximises their research and educational use while causing no offence and treating remains with the up most respect. 

Policy documents

The below policy lays out the conditions under which the Museum will hold human remains:

Policy for the care of human remains in Museum of London collections (Word 116kb)

The Museum of London will produce and then keep under review a research assessment of its collections of human remains as recommended by DCMS

DCMS 2005: guidance for the care of human remains in Museums (PDF 342kb)