2025/09/16 by J. Patrick Barron, Bryan Bayles, Michelle Hamilton · 2 voices
Arts and Humanities · Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Museums and Cultural Heritage #Archaeological Research and Protection #Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation
paper · doi:10.1080/08884552.2025.2544568
openalex publication_date 2025/09/16 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/14
Historic skeletal collections assembled during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries have come to the forefront of ethics discussions in biological anthropology. Many of these collections were amassed prior to landmark guidelines such as the Belmont Report in which research subjects are afforded voluntary participation, beneficence, justice, and informed consent. This pilot study used methods derived from Cultural Consensus Analysis—including free listing and semantic differential scales—to assess visitor perceptions of the Grady Early Skeletal Pathology Collection, a historic anatomical pathology collection displayed at Texas State University between 2020–2021. A sample of 36 visitors provided their impressions immediately after viewing the display. Results reveal a strong duality in viewer perception: participants simultaneously expressed fascination and discomfort, seeing the collection as both educational and ethically troubling. This study contributes to ongoing efforts to develop best practices and guidelines for the ethical management of historic human skeletal collections that lack provenience or are otherwise ‘problematic’ legacy collections.