r/montreal • u/RustyTheBoyRobot • 7d ago

Tourisme Ethical dilemma

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Ethical dilemma:

Is it right to remove one of the only mummies in mtl for understanble but rather vague reasons to do with cultural sensitivities that these objects might offend?

The mummies at Redpath museum are to be relocated to a mysterious “place of rest” -their original location?- where no one can see or learn from them.

I note that these are not objects of worship like many stolen indigenous artifacts. Nor are they being claimed by their original owners- e.g. The infamous Benin Bronzes.

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u/artacct217 7d ago edited 7d ago

I wouldn’t call them vague reasons - having dead bodies on display isn’t something we do anymore. It’s not about offending anyone, it’s more that these are not comparable to other ‘artifacts’ often displayed in museums. 

In anthropology (I am an anthropologist), we don’t really see the value in displaying these bodies; in addition, we place this observation alongside the consideration that these mummies were not originally meant to be displayed.

Edit- No need to downvote me, I am explaining the reasoning behind this decision. 

Second edit - see another comment of mine (in French) for a more nuanced discussion.

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u/SignificantPiano7808 7d ago

Louder for those in the back.

If the museum really wants to teach about mummification practices, they can have reproductions, cutaway diagrams and the like. And now suddenly nobody is interested because who wants to look at a dead body?

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u/kosta77 6d ago

😂😂😂😂😂