{"id":5158,"date":"2026-08-17T19:07:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-17T19:07:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/osg-postprints\/?p=5158"},"modified":"2026-08-17T19:07:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-17T19:07:10","slug":"conservation-of-an-anonymous-ancient-egyptian-man-a-reckoning-with-shifting-human-remains-ethics-at-the-penn-museum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/osg-postprints\/2026\/08\/17\/conservation-of-an-anonymous-ancient-egyptian-man-a-reckoning-with-shifting-human-remains-ethics-at-the-penn-museum\/","title":{"rendered":"Conservation of an anonymous ancient Egyptian man: a reckoning with shifting human remains ethics at the Penn Museum"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Tessa de Alarcon, Molly Gleeson, Dr. Jennifer Houser Wegner, Ahmed Tarek Ibrahim, Jessica Byler, and Madalyne Epperson<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Abstract<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

 An unprecedented renovation and reinstallation of the Penn Museum\u2019s Ancient Egypt and Nubia galleries is underway. Historically, the Museum\u2019s Egyptian displays featured human remains, and the initial plan for the new galleries was to maintain this approach. Mummification was an important aspect of Egyptian cultural beliefs, religious concepts, and funerary practices, and its continued presentation was identified as an essential curatorial objective. The design of these galleries overlapped with the Museum developing a Human Remains Policy that guides the use of human remains in the Museum\u2019s collection including their display. The new policy, established in 2023, changed the approach to the display of remains in the new galleries and as a result, impacted their conservation. Through a single case study, the treatment of the remains of an anonymous man (L-55-15A, PMA 21-46-8), this talk will explore how the implementation of a new policy during an exhibit development and conservation process required a substantial pivot and the development of treatment solutions previously not considered.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The remains of a Ptolemaic Period anonymous man have been on long-term loan to the Penn Museum from the Philadelphia Museum of Art since the late 1920s. In the 1970\u2019s, his wrappings were cut open and removed and his body was autopsied.  These practices are not consistent with current research, curatorial, or conservation approaches at the Museum. His remains were displayed in the Penn Museum for decades until the gallery was de-installed for the current renovation project. To prepare him for display in the context of the new galleries, conservation treatment needed to consider both the curatorial and interpretive goals of reuniting him with his funerary material (cartonnage and coffin) while also following the new human remains policy that requires that no remains be visibly exposed.  Treatment decision-making included careful consideration of his history, extensive research into his previous treatment, original wrapping, and the autopsy of his remains, and collaboration to develop a respectful and ethical solution. Several solutions were considered; these will be presented along with the archival research and a summary of the various discussions that led to the final decision to rewrap him in modern linen as the surviving original wrappings were insufficient to cover his remains for display.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This talk will illustrate the collaborative process that is critical in these types of challenging treatments that involve complex ethical issues and various perspectives and goals. It will also outline the decision-making and methods utilized to re-wrap these ancient Egyptian human remains, which required many different skills and a team to execute. The talk will conclude with reflections on the Penn Museum\u2019s Human Remains Policy and the ways that it has shifted treatment plans for this individual and other remains in the Museum\u2019s collection. Images of human remains will be included in the presentation of this project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2026 | Montreal | Volume 33<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tessa de Alarcon, Molly Gleeson, Dr. Jennifer Houser Wegner, Ahmed Tarek Ibrahim, Jessica Byler, and Madalyne Epperson Abstract  An unprecedented renovation and reinstallation of the Penn Museum\u2019s Ancient Egypt and Nubia galleries is underway. Historically, the Museum\u2019s Egyptian displays featured human remains, and the initial plan for the new galleries was to maintain this approach. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":344,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5158","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/osg-postprints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5158","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/osg-postprints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/osg-postprints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/osg-postprints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/344"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/osg-postprints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5158"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/osg-postprints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5158\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5159,"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/osg-postprints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5158\/revisions\/5159"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/osg-postprints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5158"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/osg-postprints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5158"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/osg-postprints\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5158"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}