Visitors to the National Archaeological Museum (MAN) in Madrid will no longer be able to admire the Guanche mummy that had been on display since December 2015 in the area dedicated to the Canary Islands within the Protohistory section, according to El País. The removal of the mummy coincides with the publication of the Letter of Commitment for the Ethical Treatment of Human Remains, which was published this on the websites of each museum.
The Guanche mummy was an adult male, approximately 1.62 meters tall, lying supine with long hands on his thighs. It consists of the mummified remains of one of the ancient inhabitants of the island of Tenerife, dating back more than 850 years, according to La Vanguardia. A dating study conducted by the museum in 2018 determined that the mummy lived between the 12th and 13th centuries, with a probability greater than 95%.
The new guidelines stipulate that the exhibition of human remains is only allowed in "essential" cases, and when displayed, they must be correctly documented and contextualized, as noted by La Razón. The Letter of Commitment states that exceptions to the exhibition of human remains can be made "when it is essential to convey the knowledge that is intended to be shown, provided that there is no other alternative in the exhibition discourse and they are correctly documented and contextualized. In such cases, they will be shown with respect, care, and dignity," although it does not specify how such situations should be.
The Guanche mummy came from a cave in the Herques ravine on the southeastern coast of the island of Tenerife. It was found in the cave along with hundreds of others in the second half of the 18th century. Historian and biologist José Viera y Clavijo described the cave in which "no less than a thousand mummies" were found, including the one at the MAN, discovered in 1763–1764. Known popularly as Jacinto, the mummy passed through several institutions: the Museum of Antiquities of the Royal Library (1766), the Royal Cabinet of Natural History (1771, later called the Museum of Natural Sciences, 1815), the National Museum of Anthropology (1910), and the National Archaeological Museum (2015), according to El Correo.
For years, the authorities of Tenerife demanded the return of the Guanche mummy to the island, as similar mummies are exhibited in the Canary Islands. The Parliament of the Canary Islands asked the State to return the Guanche mummy from the National Archaeological Museum. "It is being moved to storage," emphasized sources from the Ministry of Culture when asked if the Guanche mummy will return to Tenerife as requested by the Cabildo of Tenerife and the Canary Parliament, according to La Razón.
The Ministry of Culture committed to adopting an "ethical" standard to not exhibit human remains in the sixteen state-owned museums, including the Museums of Altamira, Mérida, and the Museum of America. At the Museo de América, the display cases that exhibited mummified people from Peru will be darkened, including remains like the Paracas mummy in the Quimbaya treasure room, and these remains will be removed. The Museum of Anthropology has 4,448 human remains, including bodies, parts, and artifacts.
The Letter of Commitment follows the guidelines of the ICOM Code of Ethics for Museums. The document states that the remains must be stored and treated "with respect and dignity, and in accordance with the interests and beliefs of the communities and ethnic or religious groups of origin."
Exhibiting human remains was a common and accepted practice by many museums around the world, from the British Museum to the Museum of Cairo. In Spain, some museums took steps in the last three years to remove skulls and mummified people from their halls. The new policy reflects changes in the treatment and exhibition of these pieces. The Letter of Commitment also addresses the claims of colonized peoples.
The museums that signed the commitment include the National Archaeological Museum, Museum of Anthropology, Museum of America, Museum of Decorative Arts, Museum of Costume, Museum of Romanticism, Sorolla Museum, Cerralbo Museum, El Greco Museum, Sephardic Museum, National Museum of Roman Art, National Sculpture Museum, Valencia Ceramic Museum, Altamira Museum, House of Cervantes, and Museum of Underwater Archaeology of Cartagena, according to La Vanguardia.
The article was written with the assistance of a news analysis system.