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Archaeology and respect for the dead

Scarre, Geoffrey

Authors

Geoffrey Scarre



Abstract

Contemporary archaeologists commonly acknowledge moral responsibilities to the descendants of the subjects whose remains they disturb. There has been comparatively little reflection within the professional community on whether they have duties to the dead themselves. I argue that doing wrong to the dead is not reducible to harming their successors; that there are ways in which archaeologists can wrong the dead qua the living persons they once were; and that nevertheless this may not have such radical implications for the practice of archaeology as might first be imagined.

Citation

Scarre, G. (2003). Archaeology and respect for the dead. Journal of Applied Philosophy, 20(3), 237-249. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.0264-3758.2003.00250.x

Journal Article Type Article
Publication Date Nov 1, 2003
Deposit Date Mar 27, 2008
Journal Journal of Applied Philosophy
Print ISSN 0264-3758
Electronic ISSN 1468-5930
Publisher Wiley
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 20
Issue 3
Pages 237-249
DOI https://doi.org/10.1046/j.0264-3758.2003.00250.x