Archaeology: Enriching Historical Knowledge or Disturbing the Dead?
By: Maya Abouelnasr
@EmEn1125
Since the 1922 discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb, fascination with Ancient Egypt has been widespread, fueling fictional and non-fictional literature and film, from Indiana Jones to National Geographic’s documentaries.
Following the most recent discovery of 100 ancient Egyptian sarcophagi and coffins at the Saqqara necropolis on November 14, a debate has erupted on social media whether excavating ancient tombs and displaying their contents is tantamount to unethical grave robbery.
According to a National Geographic article in April 2016, the ethical debate about excavating and displaying human remains and other objects stems chiefly from the belief that this disrespects their right to rest in peace.
This has led to the distinction between the objectives of archaeology and grave robbing becoming blurred for those who are of the opinion that archaeology only seeks to gain profit from unearthing discoveries that are thousands of years old.
Some social media users have let their imaginations lead the narrative that bad luck or illness (like the Pharoah’s curse) befalls those who disturb ancient Egyptian tombs and mummies – ideas first popularized by the media, particularly in films, since the 1930s and 1940s.
But Professor of Egyptology Salima Ikram told The Caravan that archaeologists seek to expand knowledge through studying these ancient artifacts and remains, albeit human or animal.
“If archaeologists are doing a good job, they will be treating the mummies and the bodies with respect. They will be giving a biography back to the person and letting them live forever, which is what the Egyptians wanted,” she said.
Ikram also explained that the debate has long been driven by emotions, with arguments to be presented on both sides.
Experts in the field of archaeology view ancient discoveries as greatly beneficial to preserving stories that may otherwise be lost to history, such as ancient peoples’ health, customs, traditions, philosophies and overall lifestyle.
Some people on social media believe that a more respectful way of studying and excavating could be to return the discoveries to where they were found after gathering information.
They say that ancient artifacts from Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and other regions of antiquity should be returned from museums in Berlin and London, for example.
Ikram argues that if archaeologists were to leave discoveries where they find them the likelihood of grave robbery and looting would be much higher, as 90-95 percent of excavated sites have already been robbed repeatedly.
Reiterating the point of intent being the differing factor, Ikram explained that archaeologists must assert their endeavor of knowledge in overcoming the argument by some which equates them to grave robbers.
“If archaeologists are not putting the information that they have learned about these [ancient] people or the past out there, I tell my students, they are the same as grave robbers,” Ikram said.
Speaking to The Caravan, Associate Professor of Egyptology Lisa Sabbahy echoed the point of the intent, or context, being the difference between archaeology and grave robbing.
“Context and knowledge is everything for an archaeologist and means absolutely nothing to a grave robber. Archaeologists dig to understand the past of humankind and share that knowledge with the world. Grave robbers destroy ancient sites to find things to sell,” Sabbahy said.
She added that the great care with which archaeologists do the digging is also what differentiates between them and grave robbers; archaeologists follow a lengthy process of planning and surveying the dig site prior to removing mummies or artifacts to minimize destruction.
She also explained that, as the digging up process can still inadvertently cause damage, archaeologists must keep extensive notes, drawings and photos of everything to properly document the findings.
This is done so that information can be learned and later shared with the public in the endeavor of enriching historical knowledge.
As to why some artifacts are not returned to their place of origin, one reason is that climate change has in recent decades started to cause damage.
In 2015, Harvard microbiologist Ralph Mitchell sought to investigate the reason behind the deteriorated condition in which Chinchorro mummies from South America were found upon excavation.
Mitchell and his team noted that significant deterioration of mummies discovered in the 1980s was evident when studied in the early 2000s, which coincided with higher levels of humidity and rainfall in the previously very dry environment of modern-day northern Chile and southern Peru where the Chinchorro resided.
This pointed to a need to go beyond just looking at objects and then returning them or leaving them alone, as they may otherwise be completely lost without some form of maintenance and preservation.
Sabbahy noted that this has also been the case in Egypt.
“Particularly in the last 50 years, the environment has become wetter, and the level of groundwater is much higher than in earlier times. This is very destructive to many things,” Sabbahy said.
