I.C.28
I.C.28 (William Burke) was the 28th Irish (Republic) male body to be dissected at the University of Edinburgh’s
medical school 1829. I spent three days with the Skelton at University of Edinburgh’s
anatomy museum during early summer of 2022.
The Skelton had been newly conserved prior to moving to the National Museum of Scotland for the exhibition “A Matter of Death and Life”. I was asked to specifically photograph all the areas of conservation. I was asked to provide detailed photographs of his neck, spine, knees, hands, and feet. These were all areas that had been newly cleaned. Inadvertently there are images of Burkes murder weapons his knees and hands.
The Skelton had been newly conserved prior to moving to the National Museum of Scotland for the exhibition “A Matter of Death and Life”. I was asked to specifically photograph all the areas of conservation. I was asked to provide detailed photographs of his neck, spine, knees, hands, and feet. These were all areas that had been newly cleaned. Inadvertently there are images of Burkes murder weapons his knees and hands.
Photographing human remains is complicated. There is a
constant reminder of the fragility of the material that makes up our bodies.
Respect for a human being remains is also crucial. This was a living human.
Layered on top of that William Burke took the lives of other human beings for money,
sixteen in total.
The white death mask and skull forensic composites were compiled out of curiosity having seen very early police forensic composites. This always spoke to me more about mortality and life contained within a physical structure as an unintended consequence of forensic identification.
Photography Malcolm Brown 2022.
These images have been reprocessed, remixed and adapted from images photographed by Malcolm Brown for the University of Edinburgh Heritage Collections.
The white death mask and skull forensic composites were compiled out of curiosity having seen very early police forensic composites. This always spoke to me more about mortality and life contained within a physical structure as an unintended consequence of forensic identification.
Photography Malcolm Brown 2022.
These images have been reprocessed, remixed and adapted from images photographed by Malcolm Brown for the University of Edinburgh Heritage Collections.