Over the last several years, academia, law enforcement, and the public have become increasingly aware that private commercial collecting of a wide range of human remains has found a ready home on numerous e-commerce and social media platforms and online live auctions. This is in addition to brick-and-mortar auction houses and stores through which all kinds of antiquities are sold. The growing human remains collecting community can find and sell to each other through the internet due to the generally poor moderation of black and grey market activity on most platforms. Here, we present and discuss examples of human remains trafficking pertinent to Spain, i.e., the buyers, sellers, or middlemen based in Spain (importing, exporting, or internally circulating shipments). A quantification of the number of cases investigated or prosecuted in Spain, total annual prices, or the potential amount of human remains moved through the system has not been attempted to date. Therefore, we focus on the particulars of each case to the extent known, as well as how trafficking human remains tests current cultural property and human remains legislation, and how forensic anthropology and archaeology are vital tools in the fight against this trade. We conclude with recommendations for how professionals and the public can respond when online trade is encountered and how the public can help to push back against its continued proliferation.

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The Human Remains Trade in Spain

  • Damien Huffer,
  • Nicholas Márquez-Grant,
  • Elena Ruiz,
  • Carlos Andrés Cristóbal,
  • Teresa Cabellos,
  • Enrique Dorado,
  • José Ignacio de Miguel Moro,
  • Elisa Ruiz-Tagle Fernández

摘要

Over the last several years, academia, law enforcement, and the public have become increasingly aware that private commercial collecting of a wide range of human remains has found a ready home on numerous e-commerce and social media platforms and online live auctions. This is in addition to brick-and-mortar auction houses and stores through which all kinds of antiquities are sold. The growing human remains collecting community can find and sell to each other through the internet due to the generally poor moderation of black and grey market activity on most platforms. Here, we present and discuss examples of human remains trafficking pertinent to Spain, i.e., the buyers, sellers, or middlemen based in Spain (importing, exporting, or internally circulating shipments). A quantification of the number of cases investigated or prosecuted in Spain, total annual prices, or the potential amount of human remains moved through the system has not been attempted to date. Therefore, we focus on the particulars of each case to the extent known, as well as how trafficking human remains tests current cultural property and human remains legislation, and how forensic anthropology and archaeology are vital tools in the fight against this trade. We conclude with recommendations for how professionals and the public can respond when online trade is encountered and how the public can help to push back against its continued proliferation.