How Did She Get Here?

Have you ever wondered how civilizations of the past lived? Humans are naturally curious creatures and yern to gain knowledge about faraway places and the past lives. It wasn't until recently humans had proper knowledge and resources to travel exploring the world beyond their front doors.

During the Renaissance period in Europe, people became more interested in collecting physical remnants from the past. By the 1700's, many kingdoms had set up museums to help unify their people and as a source of national pride.

A new class of industrialists emerged in the 1800's that had enough wealth to travel the world. They often purchased or took artifacts, including human remains, animals, and plants. Donald O. Boudeman purchased the mummified person within the museum's care in 1910 from an auction in California. He kept her in his home for eighteen years as a symbol of his economic and social status before donating her to the Kalamazoo Public Museum, now the Kalamazoo Valley Museum.

Most of the ancient antiquities within museums today were collected during the 1800's and 1900's, a period marked by Colonialism (one nation controlling another for economic gain). White supremacy was the accepted norm for the conquering nations. Even if an ancient civilization was revered by archaeologists, the contemporary communities often were not. During that time, many felt that even the local Indigenous lands of which these human remains and objects came from could not be trusted to safeguard the materials or adequately study them.

By the 1990's, many nations had taken steps to stop the trade of ancient materials. Since then, a number of museums have given back collections (or repatriated) to their places of origin. Unfortunately, in most cases, the information connecting the item to its rightful home has been long lost.

How do you feel about exhibiting human remains? Would you feel differently if an ancestor of yours was on display in a museum?