Dartmouth Digs Up Past: Sacred Beads Return to Native Tribes
Published Date: 1/7/2026
Notice
Summary
The Hood Museum of Art at Dartmouth College has finished checking its collection and found some Native American funerary items, like wampum beads and pottery pieces, that belong to certain tribes. Starting February 6, 2026, these items can be officially returned to the tribes connected to them. This update helps honor Native American heritage and follows important laws protecting these cultural treasures.
Analyzed Economic Effects
2 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
44 Funerary Objects Eligible for Repatriation
The Hood Museum of Art identified 44 associated funerary objects — one lot of wampum beads and 43 pottery sherds, shells, and limestone — that are culturally affiliated with the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians; Poarch Band of Creek Indians; Seminole Tribe of Florida; The Muscogee (Creek) Nation; and The Seminole Nation of Oklahoma. These objects may be returned to those tribes or eligible lineal descendants on or after February 6, 2026.
Who Can Request Repatriation
Written repatriation requests may be submitted by any one or more of the Indian Tribes named in this notice, by lineal descendants, or by other tribes or Native organizations that show by a preponderance of the evidence a cultural affiliation. If competing requests are received, the Hood Museum of Art must determine the most appropriate requestor before repatriation, and joint requests are treated as a single request; repatriation may occur on or after February 6, 2026.
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