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5. THE CHALLENGES OF THE EXCAVATION PROCESS OF WELLS USED AS BURIAL FEATURES IN CYPRUS. DEALING WITH THE RECOVERY OF HUMAN REMAINS

THE CHALLENGES OF THE EXCAVATION PROCESS OF WELLS USED AS BURIAL FEATURES IN CYPRUS. DEALING WITH THE RECOVERY OF HUMAN REMAINS

Baranhan Gulseren, Hartsioti Sophia

Committee on Missing Persons in Cyprus, “Bi-Communal Forensic Team”, Cyprus

Baranhan Gulseren, e-mail: gulseren_86@hotmail.com; Hartsioti Sophia, e-mail: shartsioti@hotmail.com.

Abstract

The principal objective of this paper is to demonstrate the challenges of locating, excavating and recovering human remains from wells, one of the most common burial features that the Committee on Missing Persons in Cyprus (CMP) is dealing with. The frequency of burials in wells can be explained by the little amount of time and effort needed in burying the bodies since they already exist and are not distinguishable from the surrounding environment. For our purpose, wells are divided in two main categories, those that are open and the filled ones. While the open wells are visible and easy to find, special methods need to be applied in order to locate the filled ones. In both situations, the scientists have to deal with the depth of the wells. That is why an access ramp is constructed by the excavator to reach the undefined level where the human remains, which are situated in the well, are located. During the removal of the deposit of the wells different challenges, either caused by nature or humans, can be encountered. For example, during the years these abandoned wells were used as “trash pits” (garbage, dead animals, discarded materials) or were altered (e.g., collapsed, water existence) by natural forces. The same reasons can be present during the exhumation process. Once these difficulties are confronted, with the use of several techniques the scientists have to concentrate on the exhumation process, which is mainly followed manually. The procedure depends primarily on the type of burial (single or multiple/commingled), the existence of water or not, whether it was disturbed, and the decomposition of human remains inside the well.

Keywords

forensic anthropology, wells, Cyprus, CMP, human remains, excavation, exhumation

Цит.: Baranhan Gulseren, Hartsioti Sophia THE CHALLENGES OF THE EXCAVATION PROCESS OF WELLS USED AS BURIAL FEATURES IN CYPRUS. DEALING WITH THE RECOVERY OF HUMAN REMAINS // Moscow University Anthropology Bulletin (Vestnik Moskovskogo Universiteta. Seria XXIII. Antropologia), 2014; 3/2014; с. 24-25