The recent article titled "Long day with bones leaves
experts weary" (http://www.kennewick-man.com/kman/news/story/6685243p-6571186c.html)
by Anna King of the Tri-City Herald (Seattle) discusses the long awaited study
of the prehistoric remains known as the Kennewick
Man. About 9,000 years ago a 35-45 year old man died and was
buried along the Columbia River. Three
thousand years before the earliest known use of the wheel, five thousand years
before the Great Pyramids of Egypt were built, and seven thousand years before
the birth of Christ, Kennewick Man walked through the deep forests of the
American Northwest.
In 1996 the bones of this ancient human were discovered,
beginning another odyssey for this individual (see http://www.kennewick-man.com/kman/photos/index.html
for photos and additional information). This one played out mostly in court,
and challenged the US Army Corps of Engineers, several Native American Tribes,
and a team of scientists to come to a compromise over what to do with the
bones. After nine years of intense litigation, the scientists were finally able
to study one of the earliest human skeletons ever found in the New World. Spiritual leaders of Northwest tribes, who
were on the other side of contentious court battles, say they hope the bones
will be laid to rest back in the earth after the scientists finish. Some of the tribes are concerned about testing that would
destroy parts of the bones, such as those that might be done to pin down
Kennewick Man's age or examine his DNA. The scientists say they have gained
permission from the Army Corps of Engineers to test the fragments of bone left
over from previous tests.
Further studies of Kennewick Man could be stopped if a bill
proposed by U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., passes and a two-word amendment
changes the wording of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation
Act. It would let federally recognized tribes demand the return of remains,
even if they can't prove a link to a modern tribe. This position has been roundly criticized by scientists,
both those who just want remains such as these studied because it contributes
to our knowledge about the past, but also those who see further encroachment of
religion into scientific practice. Just as it would cross the separation between
church and state to disallow any scientific study that insults the
sensibilities of some Christians, so too would it defy the separation of church
and state to disallow study of ancient remains in North America, since the only
real objection the modern day tribal authorities can give is that it insults
their religious sensibilities and their creation folklore. Since the remains
are too ancient to realistically affiliate with any modern day tribe, there is
no practical reason to accept their claims that these remains have any social
or familial importance to them, any more than an Irish-American has the right
to dispute the study of peat-bog remains in Scotland. More to come on this, I’m sure…
For those interested in what’s already known about the Kennewick
Man, check out the first forensic study of the remains, done by the first
anthropologist on the site, James C. Chatters. He has a web site (http://www.mnh.si.edu/arctic/html/kennewick_man.html)
with a short description of the skeletal remains and some basic interpretations
of what they might mean about the individual.
1:41:08 AM 
|
|
