Ethics

One important change in bioarchaeology in North America has been the adoption of legislation affecting the status of excavation and curation of human remains. The Native American Grave Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), signed as law in 1990, forced bioarchaeologists from field schools to museums to reassess their actions in the field and in their analysis of archived collections. Importantly, bioarchaeologists were made to justify the use of such collections in present and future research. Active research programs across the North American continent have improved efforts to integrate biological data with the archaeological record. Further, NAGPRA provides a means for bioarchaeologists to connect with Native American/First Nation groups and find common ground or compromise. Further benefits from NAGPRA were to make the public and anthropologists aware of other disenfranchised groups and to reconsider issues of cultural property and ownership or stewards of the past. These repatriation concerns have been addressed outside of North America with mixed results and often for political rather than ideological purpose. No matter, that lines of communication have been open and public awareness and debate is ongoing is healthy for the future of constructive bioarchaeology in the future to assist in promoting a better understanding of the past.

There is huge potential for bioarchaeology to provide and promote a biocultural framework with which students of prehistory and the public can benefit. From individual life history to population-based studies, bioarchaeology has made significant contributions to archaeology. Bioarchaeology is a field that has matured considerably over the past century. Early ‘classificatory’ stages focused on typological and descriptive reviews whereas at present, increased focus draws upon multiple lines of evidence to assess past human experience and condition. Increased specialization has led to numerous points of reference in the natural and physical sciences which help to expand the scope of bioarchaeology and underscore its relevance in any archaeological pursuit associated with human remains.

See also: Burials: Dietary Sampling Methods; Excavation and Recording Techniques; DNA: Ancient; Forensic Archaeology; Health, Healing, and Disease; Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act; Osteological Methods; Paleodemography; Paleopathology; Stable Isotope Analysis; Trace Element Analysis.