The Digital Library of British Mortuary Science & Investigation

“棺材里充满了腌菜……刺激性的……就像一种浓烈的硝化甘油……我有他的胡须，这是副主教允许我拿走的。”汉弗莱公爵在圣奥尔本斯修道院的棺材‘泡菜’是18世纪为早期的‘法医研究’和‘黑暗旅游’而开放的众多‘古老’教堂墓穴之一。一些人谴责这是一种不尊重；另一些人则认为一门新的(新教)“考古学”正在兴起。早在宗教改革之前很久，中世纪的圣徒和王室遗骸也得到了类似的法医研究。那么，对早已死亡的人的研究是什么时候出现的？它如何塑造了现代科学、历史、考古学和教会遗产？今天的陵墓开放是罕见的，而且是受人尊敬的，在教堂内埋葬基本上在19世纪50年代就结束了。但2013年理查德三世的重新埋葬威胁到了欧洲各地更多的墓穴开放，重新引发了动荡的、悬而未决的辩论：历史上的死者有什么权利？新的测试是否证明侵入性研究是合理的？如果在过去的不同时期，对“尊重”的定义不同，那么什么才是“尊重”呢？我们如何才能将英国基督教信仰的历史与现代葬礼联系起来，在教堂里重新埋葬古人的遗骸？这些问题对于塑造当今历史悠久的教堂的公共政策和行为准则至关重要。与将人类遗骸送回土著家园不同，围绕基督教死者的挖掘和重新埋葬的辩论尚未得到专门的、大规模的关注，但在理查德三世发现后，寻找和调查著名坟墓的请求激增。救援考古学不可避免地也会发现古代基督教背景下的死者；我们如何确保处理、储存和重新埋葬他们与过去的信仰一致？为了帮助教会政策制定者、考古学家和研究人员，有人提议建立一个历史英国殡葬科学与调查的数字图书馆。这将勾勒出20世纪前埋葬、科学史和考古学的第一部历史，并提供自公元7世纪有记录以来英国对教堂死者的当前和历史调查的第一次调查。它将为倡导者和政策制定者提供急需的证据，以告知他们在地方和国家各级的战略和应对措施。对过去殡仪馆调查和重新埋葬报告使用的语言进行的尖端数字分析可以揭示历史上被认为是“尊重的对待”，为我们今天如何“尊重”地处理和记录这类骚乱提供背景和建议。这一新知识可以在其历史背景下锚定伦理、程序和宗教辩论；推进科学、医学、宗教、法律和死亡的历史；并指导学术、教会和遗产部门作为我们继承的死者的保管人的做法和政策。除了数字图书馆，还将建立一个跨部门的网络，名为“人类：遗骸合作实验室”，将参与管理教堂历史人类遗骸的学术界和非学术界人士、咨询网络、慈善机构和专业服务组织聚集在一起。成员将能够分享研究成果，确定协作点，支持这一领域的新研究和正在进行的研究，并与项目团队合作。通过与其他学者和利益相关者的国际合作，该图书馆将在英国以外的地方分享这一世界领先的模式和数据，并随后包括非教会的例子以供比较。因此，图书馆为英国领导新一代学者研究这一主题提供了基础；促进了英国国内外进一步的跨学科研究；与教堂、博物馆、图书馆、档案馆、历史墓地(等)合作建立了专门的研究线路；并产生了开创性的研究成果。我的目标是最终建立一个历史殡仪馆管理和调查中心，以继续这项至关重要的研究，并在现代关切不断演变时做出回应。

"The Coffin was full of pickle...pungent...resembling a strong solution of nitre...I have his Beard wch the Archdeacon gave me leave to take". Duke Humphrey's coffin 'pickle' at St Albans Abbey was one of many 'ancient' church tombs opened in the 18th century for an early type of 'forensic study' and 'dark tourism'. Some decried it as disrespectful; others saw a new (Protestant) science of 'archaeology' emerging. Medieval saints' and royal remains had also received similar 'forensic' study long before the Reformation. So, when did study of the long-dead emerge? How has it shaped modern science, history, archaeology, and Church heritage? Tomb opening today is rare and 'respectful' and burial inside churches largely ended in the 1850s. But the 2013 reburial of Richard III threatened more tomb openings around Europe, reigniting volatile, unresolved debates: what rights do the historic dead have? Do new tests justify invasive studies? What constitutes 'respectful' if it has been defined in different ways at different times in the past? And how can we link the history of Christian belief in Britain with modern funerals for reburying ancient human remains in churches? These questions are vital for shaping public policies and codes of practice in historic churches today. Unlike the return of human remains to their indigenous homelands, debates surrounding the excavation and reburial of the Christian dead has not yet received dedicated, large-scale attention, yet requests to find and investigate famous graves surged after Richard III's discovery. Rescue archaeology inevitably uncovers the dead from ancient Christian contexts as well; how can we ensure that handling, storing, and reburying them aligns with past beliefs?To assist Church policymakers, archaeologists, and researchers, a digital library of Historic British Mortuary Science & Investigation is proposed. This would outline the first history of pre-20th century burial, scientific history and archaeology and offer the first survey of current and historic investigations of the church dead in Britain since records began in c.7th century AD. It would provide advocates and policymakers much-needed evidence to inform their strategies and responses at local and national levels. Cutting-edge digital analysis of the language used to report past mortuary investigations and reburials can reveal what has historically been considered 'respectful treatment', offering context and advice for how we 'respectfully' conduct and record such disturbances today. This new knowledge can anchor ethical, procedural, and religious debates in their historic contexts; advance histories of science, medicine, religion, law and death; and guide practices and policies from academic, Church, and heritage sectors as custodians of our inherited dead. Alongside the digital library, a cross-sector network called 'The Human: Remains Collaboratory' will be established, bringing together academics and non-academics, advisory networks, charities, and professional services involved in managing historic human remains from churches. Members will be able to share research, identify points of collaboration; support new and on-going research in this area; and work with the project team. Through international partnerships with other scholars and stakeholders, the library will share this world-leading model and data beyond the UK and later include non-Church examples for comparison. The library thus provides the foundation from which Britain can lead a new generation of scholars on this topic; promote further interdisciplinary research within and beyond the UK; establish a dedicated line of research in collaboration with churches, museums, libraries, archives, historic cemeteries (etc.); and generate ground-breaking research. My aim is to eventually create a Centre for Historic Mortuary Management and Investigation to continue this vital research and respond to modern concerns as they evolve.