The AIA has a complex set of stakeholders comprised of ARCHAEOLOGY magazine subscribers and readers, professional members who practice archaeology all over the world, aspiring archaeologists and students, non-professional members and donors who back the Institute’s mission to promote archaeological inquiry and public understanding of the past, and participants in the AIA’s public and professional programs. The AIA‘s approach to disseminating information about archaeology reflects the diversity of these stakeholder groups.
The AIA recognizes the ethical imperative to accord proper respect to the descendent communities connected to human remains and strives to ensure that images are not used in violation of the wishes of those modern communities for any AIA publications, presentations, programs, or products. We also note differing sentiments on this topic and recognize other cultures’ interests in passing on knowledge about the customs, beliefs, diets, conditions, and longevity of past lives through visual representations that document ancient or historic burials. We strive to balance these different worldviews through a considerate and varied approach depending on multiple factors including: the cultural affiliation of the deceased individual(s), the scientific or educational value of depicting the human remains, where the image will appear, how it is encountered, and who the audience is. When images of human remains are used after careful deliberation, we seek to provide safe spaces and be inclusive towards those that might be harmed by the images by giving advanced warning of sensitive content.
A task group was charged with reviewing the issues involved in the use of images of human remains in different AIA venues, including conference presentations, lectures, and publications. Because the membership of the AIA studies materials from a wide variety of geographical regions, cultural influences, and time periods, and does so using diverse methodologies, it is recognized from the start that the AIA will not arrive at a single statement or policy that is meant to cover all possible situations. Instead, it is necessary to develop a list of best practice questions which will serve as guidelines for those making presentations or preparing manuscripts. The AIA recognizes that these perspectives and practices are ever-evolving and guidelines will therefore also be in regular review and further development.
As the study of the ancient and recent human past through material remains, archaeology may include the discovery and study of human remains, especially in mortuary contexts.
Archaeologists have the responsibility to work with human remains from a perspective of ethical stewardship. Archaeologists also have the responsibility to publish and disseminate their research, which may include figures and images of human remains along with their find contexts and associated finds. Human remains are deserving of the dignity and respect afforded to living people; therefore, images of them should be used only when necessary for academic or educational purposes in order to illustrate the archaeological evidence in context. Images of human remains have the potential to be offensive and unsettling to some members of the community with whom we work and to whom we present, so there should always be an intellectual rationale for their use and images should never be sensationalized or gratuitous.
Mortuary contexts recovered during archaeological investigations contain human skeletal remains that document a person’s lived experience and the details of their death as told by the community during their burial. The degree to which images of these contexts or remains are disseminated varies by culture, community, and stakeholders. The AIA supports the respectful and thoughtful dissemination of images for academic, professional, and/or educational purposes within the appropriate parameters depending on cultural context. Images of human remains may be shown in photographs, but a layer of separation may be warranted in particular situations. As such, images may be more appropriately disseminated as illustrations, line drawings, archaeological plan maps, or in photo-negative formats. These options support academic and educational dissemination of archaeological research while balancing ethical or privacy concerns.
The stakeholder-specific best practices for the use of images of human remains such as in the AIA’s publications, ARCHAEOLOGY magazine and the American Journal of Archaeology (AJA), will appear on the websites for those publications. In other locations such as advertising, the best practice guidelines will be part of the review process.
Like the AJA, the AM presents the research of professionals, and the use of these images will occur as it is necessary due to the nature of the research. The AIA will request from the time of the “Call for Papers” that all presenters who will be using images of human remains make note of this before they begin.
The Lecture Program requests that lecturers consult the AIA Guidelines in selecting possible images and then inform the audience online and in person that they will be using images of human remains. Guidance will be added to lecturer information packets and a standardized slide provided to all our lecturers and AIA Local Societies for use with presentations including images of human remains.
The AIA is North America's largest and oldest nonprofit organization dedicated to archaeology. The Institute advances awareness, education, fieldwork, preservation, publication, and research of archaeological sites and cultural heritage throughout the world. Your contribution makes a difference.
