The Bone Museum is Wrong
The bones trade is flourishing. With that are questions both for and against. On a TikTok recently posted by Channel 4 News, the topic of regulating the U.K. bones trade was raised by a Labour Member of Parliament. The comments were varied with some asking why people would even want to have human bones. Others had a more liberal attitude, asking why the government should regulate the trade and the private ownership of bones. It’s an odd one, to be sure. I think that the trade in human remains should be heavily regulated and private ownership should not be allowed. I’m barely okay with museums displaying human remains. There have been attempts by the House of Lords to regulate the trade in indigenous remains, which makes sense and is good! No one should possess indigenous remains aside from the indigenous people the remains belong to. But why should it end there? The trade in human bones is largely built on medical specimens, but that does not mean they were ethically sourced, especially if it was done legally.
Infamous TikToker, JonsBones, started a (unaccredited) museum from his private bone collection. His pride and joy is his wall of human spines. Jon is an artist by trade, using primarily animal remains in his art. His background is not in osteoarchaeology or anthropology. This is important to note as part of this education is the ethics around displaying human remains and interacting with them. Lacking this education means that the labelling of bones cannot be done and the ethical issues with displaying human remains are untouched. Jon displays medical specimens, typically from before the 1980s. Many of these skeletons, from the Bone Museum’s own website, come from Kolkata, India. This area was instrumental in the British colonisation of India. It’s a costal region of the country that suffered heavily, with many churches being built to convert the Hindu and Muslim population. It was also a centre for the independence campaign, witnessing the Revolt of 1857. During colonisation, most acutely after the passing of the U.K. Anatomy Act 1832, those who worked cremating the dead were pressured and forced by the British Regime to turn over the bodies to companies that traded bones. This is where a lot of the bones in the Bone Museum come from: colonisation. The Bones Museum also sell human bones. One time, the Museum tried to sell the mislabelled skull of what they believed to be a Saami person. The Saami are indigenous to Sampi, the northern regions of Norway, Sweden, Finland, and parts of Russia. Selling an indigenous skull is… a bad look. It is self-evidently unethical. The listing was taken down, but only after there was wide-spread backlash on social media. In the 1980s, India made the exporting of human remains illegal. This is why most bones possessed by the Bone Museum come from before that time. Now, in the U.K., most bones come from historic collections, or, with bodies, are donated for dissection. However, the bones trade in India still carries on, just more illegally than before.
“Other cultures do it.” Yes. But you’re probably not part of those cultures, are you? Día de las Ñatitas is practised by the indigenous Aymara in Bolivia. It’s a type of folk-Catholicism that blends indigenous practises with Catholic belief. The skulls used for this are decorated and act as influencers for protection, health, wealth, e.t.c.. Anything you can think of. This mirrors the ways saints are often revered, with each saint being given a specific purview over an aspect of life. The Church obviously has issues with this, but the Ñatitas are brought to mass and people want them to be blessed. Tsantsa are another indigenous practise that has to be taken by white people. Commonly known as “shrunken heads”, Tsantsa are from Shuar/ Achuar peoples in Ecuador and Peru. These were stolen and held by Euro-Americans and Europeans during the 1800s and 1900s. The stealing of these heads led to violence amongst the Shuar and Achuar peoples. But why do it? What is the appeal of having these things? Well, it’s the material culture of colonialism. When regular people had oddity cabinets, they were often full of trinkets and tid-bits related to colonialism. It was a visual representation of the knowledge possessed by an individual. These cabinets were to show off, and the more “exotic” the stuff, the more travelled and interesting you were.
So, why have bones? You will notice with those that collect bones that they are stubborn in their position. I believe this is because collecting human bones is more than just a hobby, it’s an identity. There is a feeling of security and safety in possessing a defined sense of self. It is also something quirky and unique. This reminds me of the “pick-me”, “I’m not like other girls” people. Standing in opposition to wider society can enrich someone’s identity. It makes them unique, which is something everyone wants to feel. There is an honesty to it. You are who you show yourself to be. This is a similar mindset to anyone who collects anything. There is also a sense of community. The bone collecting community is very tight-knit and close, with constant trading going on. Feeling a sense of community is a natural human desire, but the ethics of bone collecting is… well, you’ve read what I’ve written. It’s also expensive to buy human bones. A fully articulated skeleton is worth around £6500! Selling that could set you up for a month. It’s financially lucrative, but also expresses something about yourself. Like the oddity cabinets of the past, it’s a visual representation of who you are. You are quirky, different, and morbid. But all of this comes off the backs of exploited bodies who should be laid to rest. That’s the ultimate point here. These are the bodies of people, often disabled bodies that are strung up like exotic oddities. These people deserve to be returned home. They shouldn’t be on a mantel piece, they should be where they want to be.
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