Johann David Max Dreyssig, a German immigrant and war hero whose skeleton was displayed at the South Australian Museum for almost 80 years, was laid to rest on Saturday at West Terrace cemetery in Adelaide.
Dreyssig passed away from cancer at the age of 62 in 1913. He gave his body to Prof Archibald Watson, an eccentric University of Adelaide anatomy professor. Watson had Dreyssig’s remains reduced to a skeleton and sold to the museum for £10 in 1920.
Did You Know? Dreyssig earned the Iron Cross for bravery after serving in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-71 before moving to Australia in 1885, where obituaries noted he always wore the decoration with great pride at patriotic celebrations in Adelaide.
Burial at West Terrace Cemetery Following Decades on Display
For nearly eight decades, museum visitors filed past Dreyssig’s skeleton. Archival pictures show the remains posed with one leg up on a small chair and a bird skeleton perched on an outstretched hand, accompanied by a simple sign reading “Human: Homo sapiens.” Earlier photographs show the skeleton sitting backwards with arms draped over the back of the chair.
Museum repatriation manager Anna Russo explained at the funeral that individuals could not legally donate their bodies to their doctors at that time. “We don’t know the conversations that Max had with Dr Watson on his deathbed in the North Adelaide hospital in 1913, but we do know what the laws were at that time, and we know that it wasn’t possible for people to donate their bodies to their doctors,” Russo stated. She added that Watson, the hospital, and the museum would have been aware of those legal limits.
Following months of work by the museum and the SA German Association (Saga) to locate relatives—ultimately finding none, as the family line ended in 1960—organizers arranged a burial. A Lutheran pastor read the last rites over a small casket draped with the German flag. A group of about 20 people then attended a wake at Adelaide’s German Club.
Ethical Reckoning at the South Australian Museum
Dr Ian Harmstorf, a historian and former Saga president, recounted Dreyssig’s journey at Saturday’s gathering. He noted that after the first world war, the skeleton was likely left in one of Watson’s cupboards, then sat unheeded behind a curtain at the museum alongside other bones, mostly from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Dreyssig was later put on display in 1942 during the second world war to teach students about human anatomy.
The display drew international controversy in 2009. Harmstorf noted that “Max almost caused a diplomatic insult” after a German visitor complained to the German government about the indignity of the exhibition. The museum finally removed the remains from display in 2019.
Dr Rob Saint, chair of the museum’s board, acknowledged that past institutional practices fell short. “Sadly, and as a disturbing example of the different scientific attitudes and museum practices at the time [which were] not even legal, his remains were treated as a specimen, an object of scientific interest, as an addition to the museum collection,” Saint said.
Answers to Key Questions About Max Dreyssig
When did Max Dreyssig die and how old was he?
Dreyssig died of stomach cancer in 1913 at the age of 62, following a diagnosis by Dr Archibald Watson.
How much was Dreyssig’s skeleton sold to the museum for?
After Dr Archibald Watson had Dreyssig’s body reduced to a skeleton, it was sold to the South Australian Museum for £10 in 1920.
When was Dreyssig removed from public exhibition?
The museum removed Dreyssig’s skeleton from public display in 2019, a decade after a visiting German tourist complained to the German government about the exhibit.
What steps should modern cultural institutions take when reviewing historical human collections acquired under questionable past legal standards?