Curators of ancient human remains and paleogenomicists requesting access to Ancestors for DNA samples: social, political and ethical implications [tentative title]

Abstract (English)

Human palaeogenomics produces narratives about events & populations located in the past. These narratives circulate just as samples do. They travel from burial sites, curating institutions, so as the spit local stakeholders sometime give to geneticists whose laboratories are usually located in Western cities. Then, these narratives come back crystallized in papers, press articles or community feedback activities. Behind the ‘ancient DNA (aDNA) revolution’ and the big headlines archaeogenetics generates significant implications for the construction of identities at global, national, and local levels. To this date, the critical scholarship has paid limited attention to social aspects of aDNA beyond ethical guidelines, and beyond the Lab. In this paper, I will reflect on how access to Ancestors for sampling is negotiated with curating institutions. This paper will explore some of the ethical dilemmas, power dynamics, and the responsibilities of anthropologists curating Ancestors in museum collections when it comes to grant access to archaeogeneticists with a view to extract and sequence ancient DNA. This paper will afford insights into ancient DNA, as not only a scientific development but also a social, cultural, and political vector.