During excavations, archaeologists sometimes stumble upon human bones. It’s inevitable when you’re digging up the final remnants of an ancient society. But what happens to all those bones that are found accidentally? Not all of them end up in museums, after all—but should they?

The short answer is: Every country has a different set of laws and traditions on how to deal with the discovery of human remains.

“In England, they’re sometimes reburied a few years after the excavation,” says Reddit user alriclofgar, an antiquities expert, in a post in Reddit’s Ask Historians community.

This is because of a law that was introduced in 2008, which stipulated that all humans remains found in England must be reburied within two years of discovery, according to The Guardian.

And this is regardless of the skeleton’s age. The legislation even includes Neanderthal remains. In fact, scientists had to return bones found at Stonehenge, even if those remains date all the way back to 3,000 BC.

On the one hand, this can be a good thing, explains alriclofgar:

“I also hate to see the dead (especially from cultures like those of the early middle ages which seem to have believed that a person’s final resting place was connected to their experience of continuing existence after death) taken from their places and stored in a museum warehouse, university cupboard, or excavator’s shed.”

On the other hand, it can seriously hinder scientific discovery, alriclogfar implies:

“Similarly, my own research examines the relationship between biological sex and gendered grave goods (were women ever buried with weapons?), but some of the skeletons which it might be helpful to reexamine are now back in the ground and out of reach. So there’s a difficult balancing act between respecting the dead and gaining the knowledge we need.”

However, in much of western Europe, human remains are not returned to the ground. Reddit user Aerandir, a Germanic Iron Age expert, explains:

“In Northwest continental Europe, human remains are simply treated like any other archaeological artifact. Put on display, stored in an archive, the same you would do with animal bones or ceramics. This applies even to medieval cemeteries. I have not heard of any cases of reburial where I work.”

In the United States, excavating Native American sites is a controversial issue—with good reason—considering tribal members related to the deceased may still be alive.

Reproduction of Native American Grave at Naprstek Museum (Lynae Zebest/CCBY)

Reddit user RetarredRoof explains:

“In the western US, Native American groups tend to be pretty sensitive about exhumation of their ancestors. In California, Oregon, and Washington the common practice is to coordinate with the ‘most likely descendants’ and follow their requests. This usually means reinterment at an agreed location. The sensitivity of natives in Northern California is well founded.”

In fact, there are certain laws which prohibit archeologists from excavating some Native American remains. According to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), indigenous remains found on public property should be returned to tribal members associated with the remains.

But according to Indian Country Today, “Not all indigenous people want their ancestors returned.”

And as Reddit user PM_Your_Builds mentions: