“The desire to compare human anatomy and physiology across races and nations was very popular,” explain Tom Gillingwater, Professor of Anatomy, and Daryl Green, Co-Director of the Centre for Research Collections.
“There was active collecting of skulls and other human remains from various nations and indigenous peoples to compare these with the explicit intent of trying to prove that white Europeans were superior.” The University’s anatomical collection grew exponentially during this time and it led to the opening of its purpose-built Anatomical Museum and Skull Room in 1884.
After years of lobbying from Aboriginal leaders, the Australian Government began funding the repatriation of ancestral remains from overseas. The University was the first UK institution to repatriate Aboriginal remains in its collection and, at the time, it was one of the few institutions in Britain to have a repatriation policy.
This work is now an ongoing process with the University often working behind the scenes to progress repatriation requests.
