Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum removed an ancient Egyptian mummified head from view because there was no “informed consent from the deceased individual,” the museum said. The move has upset some conservative politicians in Scotland, with one alleging that it is a sign of “woke madness.”
According to the Times of London, the museum had previously displayed the mummified male head in its galleries. But it has now been moved to storage, and in its place is a notice reading: “We have removed human remains from this display as a mark of respect.”
A museum spokesperson sent the Times a statement that referred to industry guidelines recommended by the International Council of Museums. That group urges institutions displaying human remains to do so with “respect,” and states in its guidelines, “In all cases where human remains hold continuing cultural or spiritual importance, museums should consider restricted use or repatriation as appropriate.”
Per the Times, the museum also removed the remains of a priest, a mummified hand from Luxor, and a mummified foot.
Many European and American museums, from the Louvre to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, continue to display mummified people in their galleries. But some institutions have begun to change how they show these remains.
In the case of the National Museums of Scotland, for example, the institutions avoid using the term “mummy” in didactics, instead utilizing phrases such as “mummified person” and “mummified remains.” Doing so, the museums said in 2023, is an effort to avoid “dehumanizing” language.
A Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum spokesperson this week framed its removal of mummified remains within the context of consent. “In the absence of such consent, we believe removing ancient Egyptian human remains from display is more respectful to the deceased individuals,” the museum told the Times.
At least one conservative politician has weighed in on the situation. Murdo Fraser, the former deputy leader of the Scottish Conservatives and a current MSP, told the Times, “Even Egyptian mummies are now being cancelled by a society so obsessed with modern sensibilities that it has lost all sense of perspective. People visit museums to learn about ancient civilisations, not to see history hidden away because it fails to meet today’s ideological standards.”
He called the development a sign of “woke madness,” a sentiment that was echoed in some corners of X.
“Fuck off. Just fuck off with this brainless shit,” reads one X repost of the Daily Mail article about the news. It has more than 7,000 likes.