A flea market where human skulls are sold

How would you feel if, while strolling through a flea market on a Sunday, you suddenly came across a human skull—complete with a price tag—amidst old books, porcelain, and vintage jewelry? Not a museum piece. Not an archaeological find. But an item for sale. That is exactly the reality in Germany.

Shocking Discoveries in Germany's Colonial Past

You are standing in front of one of Europe’s most renowned medical institutions, the Charité. But did you know that many human remains from Germany’s colonial past are stored here? The Charité’s collection includes 106 human remains from Africa, Oceania, Asia, and North America.
Shocking? Wait, I have even more disturbing news.

Human Remains for Sale

A recent NDR Investigation has uncovered a „curiosity market“ near the German-Belgian border where human skulls and skeletal remains are sold. Most of the sellers do not know where these remains come from, although some claim they are from Togo, a former German colony.
In a gruesome twist, even violence is used as a selling point: a skull with a bullet hole is being offered for 2,000 euros, and a child's skull for 1,950 euros.
Did you know that trading in human remains is still legal in Germany for private individuals?
Imagine a flea market that harbors dark secrets.

Colonial History and the Context of Stolen Human Remains

Germany’s colonial past has long ceased to be a marginal topic in academic research; rather, it is a central historical issue whose effects are still felt today. Between 1884 and the end of World War I, the German Empire possessed several „protectorates“ in Africa, including German South West Africa (now Namibia), German East Africa (now Tanzania, Burundi, and Rwanda), and Togo.
These colonies served not only to exploit natural resources and exert military control, but also, ideologically, to impose a supposedly superior Western European worldview. As a result, there were repeated outbreaks of violence, land grabs, and systematic massacres of indigenous communities; the most well-known of these is likely the genocide of the Herero and Nama between 1904 and 1908.

During these acts of colonial violence, tens of thousands of people died as a result of direct violence, starvation, forced labor, and systematic persecution by the German military. But the violence did not end with death. Skulls and skeletons were exhumed, cleaned, and shipped to Germany. In some cases, survivors were even forced to prepare and pack the skulls of their murdered relatives.

These remains were used for scientific collections, medical research, and „racial studies.“ They were cataloged, measured, and archived as if they were objects.
This practice was not an isolated incident, but part of a system of colonial exploitation that viewed people not as individuals, but as objects of research. Even today, thousands of these remains are still stored in German institutions.

Legal Situation in Germany and Internationally

The legal situation surrounding the trade in human remains in Germany is paradoxical and, for many, difficult to understand. While the Cultural Property Protection Act (KGSG) of 2016 While the trade in cultural property is strictly regulated and institutions such as museums, archives, and universities are required not to acquire objects of unclear provenance, there is a significant loophole for private sellers. In many cases, human remains are not classified as cultural property under the law as long as they are not officially classified as archaeological finds. This means that private individuals can legally sell skulls, bones, or other body parts at flea markets, in online auctions, or in curio shops without providing proof of provenance.

Another problem is the lack of international harmonization. While UNESCO conventions and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples view the return of human remains as a moral obligation, there are no concrete legal mechanisms that would require private individuals in Germany to return these remains

The result is a legal gray area that raises moral questions: Who owns a human body? Can it legally be considered property? The debate over legislative reforms is becoming increasingly urgent as this trade shifts more and more to the Internet and becomes difficult to control.

Lawyers, ethicists, and activists are therefore calling for private sales to be strictly regulated and for the commercial trade in human remains to be prohibited. The current legal situation illustrates just how far the law and morality diverge on this issue and how urgently action is needed to break with colonial legacies.

The Legacy of Looting

Germany did not just loot cultural artifacts from its former African colonies, as well as human skulls, bones, and other body parts.
This photo from the African Quarter shows skeletal remains from Africa that were brought here after the genocide against the OvaHerero and Nama were packed for shipment to Germany.

Racism, Pseudoscience, and Anthropological Legitimization

In the 19th and early 20th centuries, Europe experienced a boom in pseudoscientific racial theories. Anthropologists measured skulls, determined angles and volumes, and attempted to define a person’s intelligence, morality, and worth based on biological characteristics.
Researchers such as Felix von Luschan collected thousands of skulls in order to construct hierarchies among „races.“ Berlin became a center for this research.
This science was not neutral. It legitimized colonialism, violence, and oppression. It provided ideological justification for genocide.
The traces of this ideology continue to have an impact to this day: in structural racism, in museum collections, and in academic archives.

The Medical and Scientific History of Skull Collections

The practice of systematically collecting and scientifically cataloging human remains has a long history in Germany, one that is closely linked to colonial expansion and pseudoscientific anthropology. As early as the 19th century, researchers such as Felix von Luschan (1854–1924), collecting skulls from Africa and Oceania in order to measure alleged „racial differences“ and to constructively legitimize hierarchies among people

Berlin institutions such as the Charité and the Museum of Ethnology became central collection points for skulls, skeletons, and other remains. The objects were systematically measured, labeled, and archived in cabinets, as if they were scientific specimens rather than human individuals. The goal was to use pseudoscientific methods to underpin Europe’s ideological superiority and to scientifically justify colonial excesses, forced labor, land grabs, and massacres.

Even though these practices are now considered deeply unethical, they continue to shape the structures of scientific collections to this day. Numerous skulls are still stored in Berlin’s universities and museums, while the provenance of many items remains unclear. The debate over these collections is not only historically but also ethically contentious: How should today’s academic institutions and museums deal with objects that are the legacy of colonial violence?

Restitution to communities of origin is morally imperative, but it often conflicts with bureaucratic, scientific, or conservation interests. This conflict demonstrates that the history of anthropology encompasses not only academic knowledge but also profound ethical responsibility.

International Return Movements and Global Responsibility

Germany is not alone in facing this problem. France, the United Kingdom, Belgium, and the Netherlands are also facing similar demands for restitution.
In recent years, international standards have emerged that view the return of human remains to their communities of origin as a moral obligation. United Nations and UNESCO frameworks emphasize the importance of cultural self-determination.

But restitution is a complex process: provenance research is time-consuming, political processes are slow, and clear legal regulations are often lacking.
Nevertheless, initial steps have been taken, such as the return of skulls to Namibia. These symbolic acts are important, but they are not enough to solve the structural problems.

An Economic and Curious Perspective on the Skull Trade

In addition to its moral and historical dimensions, the trade in human remains also raises questions about economics, demand, and cultural fascination. Curiosity markets, such as the one featured in the NDR report near the German-Belgian border, show that skulls and skeletons can fetch prices ranging from 500 to several thousand euros, depending on their age, origin, and „rarity.“ Particularly macabre: bullet holes or other signs of violence are used as selling points, which illustrates the morbid economics of the collectors’ world. Why do people buy such objects?

In some cases, these are medical or anthropological „antiquities,“ but often they are also objects of morbid fascination or status symbols within specific collector groups. Social media platforms, closed Facebook or Instagram groups, and online auction houses have further professionalized and internationalized this trade.

Digitalization gives sellers greater reach, but makes it harder for authorities to exercise control. At the same time, a societal trend is emerging: the line between collecting, curiosity, and ethical responsibility is blurred. The trade is legal but highly problematic from an ethical standpoint and reflects a continuation of colonial ways of thinking in which people are reduced to objects.

This economic dimension is also relevant to research and policy: as long as there is demand, the market will continue to exist. Education, legal regulations, and international repatriation initiatives are therefore key steps toward stopping the commercialization of human remains and strengthening moral responsibility toward communities of origin.

Efforts to resolve the problem

Some institutions, such as the Charité, have shown a willingness to return human remains. However, lengthy bureaucratic processes are causing progress to move at a snail's pace.

Psychological and Social Impact

The loss of human remains is more than just a historical problem; it is an open wound. For many communities, it means spiritual turmoil, a loss of cultural identity, and intergenerational trauma.

At the same time, it forces Germany to confront its colonial past. A culture of remembrance means more than just commemorative plaques; it requires concrete action. The return of remains is therefore not merely a legal matter, but moral responsibility.