%0 Journal Article
%T Legal Status of Human Remains under Polish Cultural Heritage Law
%A Kowalski, Wojciech W.
%J Santander Art and Culture Law Review
%V 2025
%R 10.4467/2450050XSNR.25.020.22685
%N 2/2025 (11)
%P 147-168
%K human remains, historical monuments, archaeological monuments, personal goods
%@ 2391-7997
%D 2025
%U https://ejournals.eu/czasopismo/saaclr/artykul/legal-status-of-human-remains-under-polish-cultural-heritage-law
%X This article critically outlines the legal regime governing human remains in Polish law. It opens with a presentation of the legal definitions of remains and other relevant concepts, including, for example, monuments, archaeological monuments, and cemeteries. The apparent inconsistency of health law and cultural heritage law is pointed out here. The second part establishes the legal status of human remains as objects of civil law. An analysis of the views of legal scholars on the relevant legislation has made it possible to recognize them as “things”, which results in their admittance even to commercial circulation. The status of things also stipulates that remains can be recognized as monuments and archaeological monuments according to the 2003 Law on the Protection and Guardianship of Monuments. The exception is the remains of identified persons, which in any case must be released to the family. Therefore, legally speaking they are not monuments and do not become property of the State Treasury as archaeological monuments. The last part of the article signals the main assumptions of the draft of the new Law on Cemeteries and Burial of the Dead, which are relevant to the discussion. The article closes with a brief conclusion.