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Journal article
Owning humankind: fossils, humans and archaeological remains
Heliyon, Vol.6(6), p.e04129
2020
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Abstract
There are a myriad of laws, guidelines and unwritten agreements relating to human, hominid and hominin remains. Legal gaps and inadequate definitions of what constitutes a fossil have meant that a ‘finders keepers’ approach is often applied to the ownership and control of our ancestors' remains. Such shortcomings expose numerous legal and ethical conundrums. Should any one organisation, individual or government control access to recently-found remains, limiting opportunities to unlock the secrets of evolution? Given that humans can start fossilisation processes immediately after burial, at what point does it become appropriate to dig up their remains? And who should control access to them? Could any prehistoric Homo ever have imagined they would one day be exhumed and their remains laid out in cases as the centrepiece of a museum exhibit? This paper surveys a number of implications that arise from these foundational questions, and ultimately challenges the belief that human, hominin and hominid remains are self-evident ‘objects’ capable of clear ownership: rather they constitute creative cultural intersections, which are deserving of greater ethical consideration. Protocols for respecting, protecting and conserving remains while allowing a greater equity in access to information about our common ancestors are both desirable and urgently required. Paleoanthropology; civil law; fossils; common law; Legislation; Archeology; Culture Heritage; Philosophy; Law
Details
- Title
- Owning humankind: fossils, humans and archaeological remains
- Creators
- Renaud Joannes-Boyau - Southern Cross UniversityAlessandro Pelizzon - Southern Cross UniversityJohn Page - Southern Cross UniversityNicole Rice - Southern Cross UniversityAnja Maria Scheffers (Corresponding Author) - Southern Cross University
- Publication Details
- Heliyon, Vol.6(6), p.e04129
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Identifiers
- 991012862798102368
- Academic Unit
- Faculty of Science and Engineering; Southern Cross GeoScience; Faculty of Business, Law and Arts; School of Law and Justice; Office of Senior Deputy Vice Chancellor, Research; Law; Science
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article