Returning Ancestral Remains

Guidelines are available for museums in England and Wales that hold human remains. The publication of the guidelines also heralds a change in law allowing national museums to deaccession human remains...

The Guidance for the Care of Human Remains in Museums, published by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), includes information on acquisition, loans and display of human remains in museums, as well as a section on dealing with claims for their return.

The guidelines represent no dramatic change in the debate on human remains, but they move things on a lot. There is now a very clear structure, making it easier for potential claimants to understand the process.

The publication of the guidelines also heralded a change in the law, allowing nine national museums, previously legally obliged to retain human remains, to deaccession human remains held in their collections under Section 47 of the Human Tissue Act 2004.

Both the British Museum and the Natural History Museum (NHM) have received requests for return in the past, which they have been unable to consider. Both museums have acknowledged that requests by indigenous peoples could now lead to some items being deaccessioned.

The British Museum has published its policy on human remains on its website, alongside details of human remains in its collections.

Why not check and see if any of your people are there?