National Museum to continue displaying mummified remains as others cover them up
The National Museum of Scotland is to continue displaying mummified human remains despite two leading Scottish venues covering them up.
The Kelvingrove Gallery and Museum and the Hunterian Museum, both in Glasgow, have taken mummified corpses out of public view over ethical concerns about exhibiting them.
Edinburgh is home to the largest collection of Egyptian remains in Scotland, mainly held by the National Museums of Scotland, but also notably in the University of Edinburgh’s Anatomical Museum collection.
The National Museums has told The Inquirer it has no plans to change its displays featuring mummified human remains and instead use them where appropriate to tell more complete stories about their origins.
What has happened in Glasgow? The mummified corpse of the Egyptian priest Nekht has been taken off public display by Kelvingrove. The reasons it gave included citing a lack of “informed consent from the deceased”, leading to widespread mockery on social media and in the press. The Hunterian Museum has covered the body of Lady Shep-En-Hor in a specially designed cloth so it cannot be seen by visitors.
Why? Generally, museums around the world have been reassessing their treatment of artefacts taken from indigineous cultures, especially ones relating to religious practices or which may have effectively been looted. Most immediately, the International Council of Museums (Icom) has updated the part of its code of ethics relating to human remains, advising museums should take care to uphold their “inherent dignity”.
So what’s different in Edinburgh? National Museums of Scotland and University of Edinburgh have undertaken extensive work in recent years to understand the provenance of their collections and consider the ethical questions they raise. Both institutions have played a leading role in repatriating items to their communities of origin, including ancestral skulls returned to Japan from the university’s Anatomical Museum and a carved memorial pole returned by the museum to the Nisga’a Nation in Canada. The National Museums has chosen to revise the storytelling in particular displays, rather than remove the items from public view.
‘Educate and engage’: The National Museums of Scotland have explicitly adopted a policy of using human remains, where appropriate, as a means of telling the deeper history surrounding them, rather than removing them from display as a default. A National Museums of Scotland spokesperson told The Inquirer that where this is done items are “chosen and curated sensitively, in a way that aims to educate and engage visitors with the human stories being told. Remains are displayed where they are key to telling an important story about a place, object, practice, person or people. “
What about other museums? Edinburgh University holds both Egyptian and human remains including in its Anatomical Museum collection. No human Egyptian remains are believed to be currently on display. The Museum of Childhood on the Royal Mile has Egyptian funerary figures, but these are considered less problematic as they do not include human remains.
Not mummies: All museums have moved away from describing human remains as “mummies”, with all the schlock horror connotations the word brings. Instead, they describe “mummified human remains”, emphasising the people behind them and their stories.
A question of resources? As museums reassess their collections and the way they are displayed, the larger and better resourced, such as the National Museums, are more able to adapt, while others face greater pressures to simply pull items from display.
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YOUR EDINBURGH BRIEFING
STORM BOELO: The capital escaped the worst of the weekend weather as Storm Boelo battered Scotland, with better weather forecast for the days ahead. A 60-year-old man died after being hit by a falling tree, near Castle Douglas, in Dumfries and Galloway, yesterday, and 85mph hit the west coast. High winds and heavy rain caused widespread disruption around Edinburgh and the Lothians over the weekend with reports of fallen trees and localised power cuts and flooding on the roads.
JACK’S THE LAD? The waiting to find out whether our very own Jack Lowden is to be the next James Bond may soon be over. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Slow Horses star, who appeared in the King’s panto as a 12-year-old, is apparently screen testing in London for the role. He is reportedly up against One Night Only star Callum Turner and possibly Sinners’ Josh O’Connor. Our money’s on Jack.
PUB SHOOTING: One person has been injured after gun shots were fired towards the window of the Robin’s Nest pub in Gilmerton Road on Friday Night. Police described the incident and a targeted attack. The Sun reports that it took place at the wake of 40-year-old Paul MacAulay who had been arrested as part of the police crackdown on organised crime in the capital.
TOP TRANSPORT: Edinburgh has been named one of the best cities in the world for public transport – and the best in Europe. Scotland’s Capital came fourth in Time Out’s list for 2026, based on the views of local residents. The city came behind only Taipei, Singapore and Hong Kong.
HOTEL ACCOLADE: Leith’s luxury floating hotel Fingal, operated by the Royal Yacht Britannia Trust, has been crowned both Europe’s Leading Boutique Hotel and Scotland’s Leading Boutique Hotel at the World Travel Awards 2026, voted for by travel industry professionals and the public.
‘MISOGYNISTIC’ REFORM: Amanda Bland, the Central Scotland and Lothians West MSP who quit reform to stand as an independent, has hit out at her former party, accusing its Scottish leaders of “abusive misogynistic behaviour”, The Sunday Post reports.
PASSIVHAUS SCHOOL: A new 800-capacity school has been opened in Wester Hailes, built to exacting Passivhaus standards to minimise energy consumption and reduce reliance on active heating and cooling systems. It is part of the city’s drive to make its schools estate more environmentally sustainable.
FIREWORKS WARNING: Police have warned anyone causing trouble within the 14 Firework Control Zones in the capital they they will “use every resource available to identify you and bring you to justice.”. The zones, which give police powers to disperse groups gathering in public places, come into effect from Friday until the Sunday after Bonfire Night. The police powers have been combined with extra youth work to tackle disorder in the affected areas in recent years.
ROSE ST HOTEL: Work to convert the former Rose Street Theatre into a 43-room hotel can go-ahead after the developers agreed a contribution of nearly £90,000 towards the city’s tram development and a further £50,000 for public realm improvements. Morningbridge Ltd received final approval for the conversion of 204 Rose Street which includes a rooftop café/bar.
RUGBY STAR RAPE TRIAL: Former Scotland rugby star Tim Visser is to go on trial accused of controlling, abusing and raping a woman over the course of 14 years in Edinburgh. The 39-year-old, of Milton Bridge, near Penicuik, in Midlothian, is charged with raping the woman on various occasions, taking intimate images of her without her consent and controlling various aspects of her life including her finances and what she ate. Visser entered a not guilty plea at the High Court in Glasgow and a trial date has been set for 12 January 2028 in Edinburgh.
FARM WIN: Congratulations to Chloe Rodriguez, an Edinburgh-based livestock adviser helping farmers across Scotland and northern England improve animal welfare, who has won Farm Adviser of the Year at the 2026 British Farming Awards. Chloe, an animal welfare specialist at Galebreaker, received the national accolade in recognition of her practical, research-led approach to improving livestock health, welfare and productivity.
Pic of the week
THE BUSINESS
Edinburgh’s creative community comes together for awards
Finalists have been chosen from more than 140 nominations for the 2026 Creative Edinburgh Awards from across the city’s creative community, shortlisting projects and organisations across eight categories.
Executive Director at Creative Edinburgh Ola Wojtkiewicz notes this year marks the 15th anniversary of the Awards and said: “The Awards are about more than recognition; they bring together artists, communities, organisations and funders, strengthening the connections that help creativity thrive.”
Among this year’s finalists are the Pianodrome (Like a huge, walnut, mahogany, musical hug), Edinburgh Arts Festival (Why the UK’s biggest arts festival has found a new home in Leith), the Hidden Door Festival (Turning an empty paper factory into the city’s hottest festival venue) and Summerhall Arts (‘You can’t just build something like Summerhall. You have to take the journey’).
The 2026 Awards will take place on 13 November at Central Hall, and the evening will be opened with a welcome speech from Màiri McAllan, Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic, who commented: “For fifteen years, these Awards have celebrated the individuals, organisations and projects that bring culture and creativity to life in our capital, and the partnerships that help that creativity flourish.”
Creative Edinburgh brings together creative thinkers and makers across the city through events, career development and mentoring.
OFFICE BOOST: One of Edinburgh’s best known modern office buildings is to undergo a major refurbishment that is expected to help ease the city’s shortage of Grade A workspace, reports Daily Business. The 60,000 sq ft Aspect Building, formerly Exchange Tower, will see work get underway this month with completion expected by the end of next year.
Plans include enlarged dual entrances from Canning Street and Torphichen Street, landscaped courtyard gardens, refurbished communal areas throughout, wellness facilities, secure cycle storage and at the heart of the amenity offering will be The Canopy, a sixth-floor rooftop terrace and pavilion available to all occupiers.
BUSINESS FESTIVAL: The annual Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce Business Festival returns tomorrow with a full day programme shaped around our theme: Adapt, Compete & Grow. More than 150 attendees are expected to attend the event, at the Royal Bank of Scotland Conference Centre at Gogarburn.
THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT
PICK YOUR GHOSTS: You’re really spoiled for choice in the run-up to Halloween. If you want big-hearted, funny, yet moving, family-friendly entertainment, then Ghosts: The haunting of Button Hall is on at The Cameo and other cinemas. Alternatively, you might prefer Ghosts: A Halloween exhibition in a creepy Edinburgh crypt. If you want to join Professors Richard Wiseman and Caroline Watt in near darkness to learn more about their investigations in Edinburgh’s Underground Vaults, tickets are free, but you must book in advance.
LAST CHANCE TO BE SEEN: Catherine Opie has been named one of Time magazine’s most influential people in art. Her powerful portrait exhibition Catherine Opie: To Be Seen at the Royal Scottish Academy on The Mound only runs until Sunday at 5pm. This week is your last chance to see - or re-see - it.
FIRE FEST: Saturday sees the Samhuinn Fire Festival return to Calton Hill, but if you don’t have your tickets already then you are going to be disappointed. You can get a taste of what to expect/what you’re missing in Sarah McArthur’s long read All hail the Queen of Winter.
QUICK BITES
TOP CAFES: A number of Edinburgh winners have claimed top prizes at The Scottish Café & Bakery Awards including The Gilmerton Bridge Café as Café of the Year, The Milkman as Restaurant Café of the Year, and Café Frokada as Café Bar of the Year.
SPICY OPENING: A new Indian restaurant, Royal India Kitchen and Bar, is to open at The Courtyard, Eskmills, this week, taking over the former home of Italian eatery Crolla’s Italian Kitchen.