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Over the years, I have been directly involved in two mummy  
exhibitions, so this piece caught my eye.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38545449/ns/travel-destination_travel/

As a young museum professional, the first exhibit was pretty exciting  
and I found myself little concerned with any ethical considerations.   
15 years later, doing an exhibition in partnership with the British  
Museum which brought Padihershef to the museum where I was working, I  
found myself facing much more difficult questions.

1.  When do human remains cease to be someone's father, brother,  
mother, relative, etc. and pass into the realm of artifact,  
appropriate to display?
2.  Particularly in regard to Egyptian mummies: what I understand of  
their beliefs leads me to wonder, no matter the circumstance, no  
matter the noble intent to care for remains, if we are showing a  
fundamental lack of respect by not repatriating and reinterring such  
mummies.

I confess to having no answers.  Not to be too sentimental, but as we  
were installing Padihershef into the museum, I wondered about the  
fantastic journey of this mummy into the future, into our present.   
Certainly, the care of his remains has passed into the hands of  
professionals who will see to its continued preservation.   
Padihershef's inner coffin has never been disturbed; in fact the  
exhibit was built around high resolution 3-d imaging and what was  
revealed.

And yet, at some level, I feel as if we engage in putting on freak  
shows when we put Egyptian mummies on display.  I, for one, can't duck  
the issue by claiming it was others who disturbed the graves, that we  
are now charged with their care. We may rightfully claim our work is  
scientific, but how, in putting on such exhibits, can we claim our  
reasons are entirely altruistic?  Displays of mummies are both  
fascinating and, we hope, profitable.

Just my 2-cents.....

Jeff Courtman
Museumscapes

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