Letters
Skeleton of “the Irish giant”
We cannot change the past, but we can learn from it
BMJ 2012; 344 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.e556 (Published 24 January 2012) Cite this as: BMJ 2012;344:e556- Martin Smith, lecturer in biological anthropology1,
- Christopher Knüsel, associate professor of bioarchaeology2,
- Andrew Chamberlain, professor of biological anthropology3,
- Piers D Mitchell, affiliated lecturer in biological anthropology, consultant orthopaedic surgeon45
- 1School of Applied Sciences, Bournemouth University, Poole BH12 5BB, UK
- 2Department of Archaeology, University of Exeter, Exeter EX4 4QE, UK
- 3Department of Archaeology, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 4ET, UK
- 4Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1QH, UK
- 5Peterborough City Hospital, Peterborough PE3 9GZ, UK
- mjsmith{at}bmth.ac.uk
We do not share Doyal and Muinzer’s views on Charles Byrne.1 Most early pathology museum displays are grave robbed specimens, executed criminals, or the unclaimed dead from workhouses.2 3 Reburial cannot change this. Rather, museum displays highlight the fact that such things no longer occur because of changes in societal attitudes. Anatomical preparations formed …
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