22nd July 2005, 01:48 PM
I for one have no problems with excavation of human remains for research purposes as long as the research goals are well-defined and appropriate to the type of cemetery being excavated. The CoE guidelines seem reasonable and permit due respect to the remains, but as Curator Kid points out, churches often operate double standards and can be really awkward if they feel like it.
Oxbeast: your response seems somewhat simplistic. The point of excavating cemeteries is not just to examine the bones, but also to examine issues of spatial analysis, social inclusion and exclusion and other societally determined factors in the layout of the cemetery, amongst other things. As such, I think it can, in fact, add considerably to the body of knowledge about the past as long as the right questions are posed. Really, it is not about "common sense", it is about the evidence, as they might say on CSI. It is not enough to say that something is common sense; you need to provide evidence to support your statements, otherwise, why should anyone accept them?
Cheers,
Eggbasket
Eggy by name, eggy by nature
Oxbeast: your response seems somewhat simplistic. The point of excavating cemeteries is not just to examine the bones, but also to examine issues of spatial analysis, social inclusion and exclusion and other societally determined factors in the layout of the cemetery, amongst other things. As such, I think it can, in fact, add considerably to the body of knowledge about the past as long as the right questions are posed. Really, it is not about "common sense", it is about the evidence, as they might say on CSI. It is not enough to say that something is common sense; you need to provide evidence to support your statements, otherwise, why should anyone accept them?
Cheers,
Eggbasket
Eggy by name, eggy by nature