Leiden University Student Repository

Laan, Bas van der (2011)

Medieval and Roman Catholic beliefs and the treatment of the dead in Dutch archaeology

Master thesis | Archaeology (MA/MSc)

This thesis deals with the question whether the contemporary archaeological treatment of Dutch Christian burials that date between the Christianization and the Reformation, suits the beliefs and practice of medieval Christians and present-day Roman Catholic beliefs. Furthermore, it was researched whether these beliefs could start to play a role in archaeological ethical practice, in case there would be any discrepancies between these beliefs and the named practice. A philosophical framework was applied in which it was argued that the interests of the dead should be taken into account in archaeological practice, because the treatment of human remains does have an effect on the deceased people to whom these remains belong. The methodology used consisted of a literature study on medieval beliefs surrounding death and burial, as well as a literature study on archaeological codes and guidelines that touch upon the treatment of human remains. Besides this part of the research, two...Show moreThis thesis deals with the question whether the contemporary archaeological treatment of Dutch Christian burials that date between the Christianization and the Reformation, suits the beliefs and practice of medieval Christians and present-day Roman Catholic beliefs. Furthermore, it was researched whether these beliefs could start to play a role in archaeological ethical practice, in case there would be any discrepancies between these beliefs and the named practice. A philosophical framework was applied in which it was argued that the interests of the dead should be taken into account in archaeological practice, because the treatment of human remains does have an effect on the deceased people to whom these remains belong. The methodology used consisted of a literature study on medieval beliefs surrounding death and burial, as well as a literature study on archaeological codes and guidelines that touch upon the treatment of human remains. Besides this part of the research, two archaeologists and one Roman Catholic priest were interviewed, resulting in qualitative data from the archaeological world and the Roman Catholic Church regarding practices and opinions on the matter. From a comparison of all of these data, it became clear that the contemporary archaeological practice is overall not directly in conflict with most medieval and contemporary Roman Catholic beliefs. However, there is room for improvement. Medieval Christian should be considered a separate stakeholder group with its own values. The interviewees from both the archaeological world and the Roman Catholic Church seem to be open for discussing the treatment of medieval human remains in archaeology. In this thesis, it has been argued that an informal approach in which the interests of medieval Christians, contemporary Christian denominations and the Dutch archaeological community play a role could result in an improved archaeological ethical practice.Show less

Author

Laan, Bas van der

Faculty

Faculty of Archaeology

Supervisors

Dries, M.H. van den

ECTS Credits

20

Language

en