I'm with you Hermione,

If it weren't for the excavation of tombs, graves, mausolea, and work with human remains, many a branch of anthropology -- paleoepidemiology is one example -- and archaeology would have damned little to study. I, for example, wish that the Park Service would allow the exhumation of Meriwether Lewis (which, as I understand it, his surviving relatives support), to prove or stop rumors that he was murdered. And I still want to know where the remains of Columbus are, which brings to mind the old Firesign Theater question: how can you be two places at once when you're not anywhere at all, since neither place may actually have the remains. There are many more places even in modern/contemporary times where exhumation and examination of physical remains is a desideratum -- proof of the deaths of Josef Mengele and Martin Bormann would be two notorious examples. There are also forensic exhumations, although I think Pete would admit that these are sometimes necessary to show that a crime was committed, especially where scientific methods of proof have advanced. So, on the whole, I'm all for it where useful data can be obtained. One question: I'm not sure what you saw as "distasteful" about the Gosnold exhumation. Could you explain?

Lee