Human remains are commonly found archaeologically in commissioned archaeological excavations in Sweden. Sometimes, finding human remains is expected and reasonably well-planned for, with a project description in place, a set budget which considers the need of documenting the remains according to the law, including the necessity of osteological and bioarchaeological expertise. Sometimes, however, the finds of human remains are unexpected and unplanned for. This often causes strong responses, which may be perceived as ethically ambiguous. In this presentation, I will reflect upon this topic through some examples of handling human remains when they are expected as well as unexpected in a contract archaeology milieu.
Period
2024 Oct 17
Event title
Nordic Network for Human Remains in Collections 2024: Meeting in Lund